Richardson Carbon Project 1

Richardson Carbon Project 1 is a soil carbon agricultural project located approximately 20km north-east of the town of Meckering, within the Shire of Cunderdin in Western Australia. Registered in January 2024, the project covers 223 hectares of agricultural land in the state's Wheatbelt region. The project is managed by the major carbon service provider Agriprove, acting as the proponent under the entity Agriprove Solutions Co No.2 Pty Ltd.

The project operates under the Estimation of Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration using Measurement and Models methodology. This framework rewards landholders for increasing the amount of carbon stored in their soil stocks. To achieve this, the project has committed to specific land management activities, specifically, the application of synthetic or non-synthetic fertilizers to address material nutrient deficiencies in the soil. By correcting these deficiencies, the project aims to boost plant growth and root biomass, which in turn draws more carbon from the atmosphere and sequesters it into the soil profile.

The Cunderdin region is characterized by a semi-arid, Mediterranean climate with an average annual rainfall of approximately 380mm, most of which falls during the winter months. The landscape typically supports broadacre cropping and sheep grazing. Soils in this part of the Wheatbelt are often described as sandy duplexes (sand over clay), loams, or red-brown earth near granite outcrops. These soil types generally have low natural organic carbon levels, making them suitable candidates for improvement through targeted nutrient management and regenerative farming practices.