The Blackall Carbon and Biodiversity Project 1

The Blackall Carbon and Biodiversity Project 1 is a Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) project located approximately 50km west of the township of Blackall in Central West Queensland. Registered in September 2023, the project covers a significant land holding of 12,470 hectares. The project is situated within the Blackall-Tambo Regional Council area, a region historically dominated by pastoral leases for sheep and cattle grazing.

Human-Induced Regeneration projects typically involve changing land management practices to allow the natural regeneration of native forests. In this specific instance, the project activities include the cessation of mechanical or chemical clearing and the active management of grazing pressure to facilitate forest regrowth from in-situ seed sources like rootstock and lignotubers. The methodology requires that the land was previously cleared and regrowth suppressed for at least 10 years prior to the project's commencement.

The Blackall region is characterized by a semi-arid climate with highly variable rainfall, averaging around 500-600mm annually, which often occurs in summer storms. The local terrain typically features the heavy, cracking clay soils (Vertosols) famous in the "black soil" plains of western Queensland, alongside areas of red earth (Kandosols) which often support Mulga or Gidyea woodlands. The inclusion of "Biodiversity" in the project title suggests a specific intent by the proponent, Natural Capital Platform Pty Ltd (formerly Carbon Neutral Pty Ltd), to manage the land for ecological co-benefits alongside carbon sequestration.