Marselle Plantation

Marselle Plantation is a plantation forestry project located in the Cowra Shire Council area of New South Wales, approximately 45km east of the township of Cowra and south of Blayney. Registered in January 2023, the project covers 156.88 hectares of land in the Central Tablelands region. The project is managed by Whanau Capital Pty Limited as trustee for the Marselle Investment Trust.

The project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative-Plantation Forestry) Methodology Determination 2022. This methodology credits the carbon sequestered in trees established for commercial timber harvesting. Unlike environmental plantings which are permanent conservation forests, plantation forestry projects allow for the harvest and sale of wood products (such as sawlogs or pulpwood). Carbon credits are calculated based on the long-term average carbon stocks of the plantation over its rotation cycles, accounting for periods of growth and harvest.

The region surrounding the project is characterized by a mix of agricultural land uses, primarily grazing for sheep and cattle, as well as broadacre cropping and existing forestry operations. The environment typically experiences a temperate climate with rainfall averaging between 600mm and 800mm annually, often with a winter-spring dominance. The soils in this part of the Central West are generally described as Chromosols (texture-contrast soils) and Dermosols, often presenting as red or yellow earths which are well-suited to both pasture and forestry activities.

An interesting aspect of this project is its dual purpose: it generates Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) while simultaneously producing renewable wood products for the economy. The proponent's name, "Whanau," is of Māori origin meaning "family," suggesting a family-oriented investment or management structure behind the Marselle Investment Trust.