Waddy Brae-Fairview-Springwater Regeneration Project

Waddy Brae-Fairview-Springwater Regeneration Project is a Human-Induced Regeneration project located approximately 40 to 50 km northeast of Injune in southern Queensland. It was registered in September 2023 and covers 18,868.90 hectares, though the registered project area underwent an amendment variation in August 2025. The surrounding Maranoa and Banana local government areas are typically known for cattle grazing, broadacre agriculture, and natural gas extraction. The region generally experiences sub-tropical to semi-arid rainfall, with soils primarily consisting of the cracking clays and sandy loams common to the Brigalow Belt.

Human-Induced Regeneration (HIR) projects involve regenerating permanent, even-aged native forests by altering land management practices on previously cleared land. Under this methodology, proponents must cease suppressive activities and allow native vegetation to regenerate to achieve true forest cover. For this project, core activities include ceasing the mechanical or chemical destruction of regrowth, alongside managing the timing and extent of livestock grazing.

This project establishes permanent native forests through assisted regeneration from in-situ seed sources, including rootstock and lignotubers, on land where regrowth was suppressed for at least 10 years prior to the project commencing. The project is operated by Santos Limited in partnership with Climate Friendly Pty Ltd on properties associated with the Santos GLNG Fairview gas field. Santos is developing this carbon offset project as a nature-based solution within its Climate Transition Action Plan to generate high-integrity Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to address residual corporate emissions, with initial ACCU issuances anticipated in 2026.