'Eltham Springs project

Eltham Springs project is an environmental planting project located in the village of Eltham in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, approximately 16km northeast of Lismore. The project was registered in May 2022 and covers 78 hectares. The land was predominantly used for agricultural purposes, such as cattle grazing or sugarcane cropping, for at least five years prior to the project's commencement.

The project operates under the Reforestation by Environmental or Mallee Plantings (FullCAM) methodology, which involves establishing permanent plantings of mixed native tree species. Environmental planting projects must meet standard methodology requirements, which typically involves planting native species at a density of at least 200 stems per hectare to ensure continuous forest canopy cover is achieved.

The surrounding Lismore and Northern Rivers region is a productive agricultural area known for dairy farming, cattle grazing, sugarcane, and macadamia orchards. The environment is characterized by a subtropical, high-rainfall climate, typically receiving between 1,200mm and 1,800mm of rain annually, and features highly fertile soils, primarily deep red krasnozem (volcanic basalt) in the hinterland and alluvial clays on the river flats.

An interesting note about this project is its inclusion in a pilot program for the "Koala Friendly Carbon Initiative," a collaborative effort run by WWF-Australia, Climate Friendly, and partnering landholders. Across five aggregated properties in the Northern Rivers region, the initiative leverages carbon abatement projects to concurrently restore critical koala habitat, track koala population conditions, and provide alternative income streams for landholders alongside productive agriculture.