Darling River Conservation Initiative Site 15

Darling River Conservation Initiative Site 15 is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) carbon project located approximately 60km southwest of Cobar in western New South Wales. Registered in May 2023, the project covers a significant area of 27,900 hectares. The region is predominantly characterized by rangeland grazing, primarily for sheep and goats, and is situated within the broader Darling River catchment area.

The project operates under the Human-Induced Regeneration methodology, which focuses on restoring native forest cover on land where regrowth has been suppressed for at least 10 years. Unlike tree planting projects, this method relies on assisting natural regeneration from existing soil seed banks and rootstock. Key activities for this project include managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing, often through fencing and water infrastructure, and actively controlling feral animals to reduce pressure on emerging vegetation.

Environmentally, the Cobar region is classified as semi-arid, experiencing hot summers and variable, low rainfall. The landscape typically features red earth soils (lithosols and red kandosols) supporting vegetation such as Mulga (Acacia aneura), Bimble Box (Eucalyptus populnea), and White Cypress Pine. These hardy conditions make the suppression of grazing pressure critical for successful forest regeneration.

This project is part of a larger aggregation of sites under the "Darling River Conservation Initiative" managed by Terra Carbon Pty Limited. It is worth noting that Terra Carbon is a subsidiary of the GreenCollar Group, Australia's largest environmental markets investor. This site is one of many in a landscape-scale effort to create conservation corridors across the pastoral districts of western NSW.