Patches Flat Environmental Plantings Project

Patches Flat Environmental Plantings Project is an environmental planting project located near Coraki on the Richmond River, approximately 25km south of Lismore in Northern NSW. It was registered in December 2022 and covers 66.87ha.

Environmental planting projects involve establishing permanent plantings of native tree species on land that was previously cleared for agriculture. These native species are typically planted at a density of at least 200 stems per hectare to ensure they eventually reach at least two meters in height and achieve proper forest canopy cover.

The surrounding Northern Rivers region is well known for dairy farming, cattle grazing, and sugar cane operations. The area experiences high rainfall typical of a subtropical climate, and the soils along the river floodplains are generally highly fertile alluvial and basalt-derived clays.

This project was set up by landholders Suellen Thompson and Gray Pritchett to restore degraded former dairy and sugar cane land. Supported by WWF-Australia’s Koala Friendly Carbon Initiative, the project aims to plant up to 50,000 trees to create a vital wildlife corridor linking to an existing woodland across the Richmond River. This habitat directly supports the survival of the local endangered koala population while concurrently generating carbon income.