Gurrabeal Reforestation and Biodiversity Project

The Gurrabeal Reforestation and Biodiversity Project is an environmental planting project located on "Gurrabeal Farm" in the locality of Billilingra, approximately 11km south of the village of Bredbo and 25km north of Cooma in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales. Registered in August 2024, the project covers a total area of 332.20 hectares. The land was historically cleared for agriculture, specifically for running Merino sheep, but has been transitioned by the proponent, Gurrabeal 1 Pty Ltd (managed by Greenprint Nature), to focus on biodiversity restoration and carbon sequestration.

The project operates under the Reforestation by Environmental or Mallee Plantings methodology, which involves establishing permanent native vegetation on land that was cleared of forest for at least five years. This specific project aims to plant a mix of 11 native tree and understory species at densities sufficient to form a permanent forest canopy. Beyond carbon, the project design exceeds baseline requirements by targeting specific habitat restoration goals rather than monoculture planting.

Situated in the Monaro region's "rain shadow," the area experiences a cool, semi-arid climate with cold winters and frequent frosts. The terrain consists of rolling hills with predominantly granite-derived soils, rather than the basalt soils found elsewhere in the Monaro. A significant environmental challenge for the site is infestation by African Lovegrass (Eragrostis curvula), an aggressive weed that the project actively manages to allow native flora to re-establish.

A key objective of the Gurrabeal project is to create a habitat corridor for the local "cold-climate" Koala population, connecting with regional koala habitats near Murrumbucca Creek. The project is led by Greenprint Nature, an organization founded by former financial trader Anthony Emmett, which emphasizes high-integrity environmental outcomes alongside carbon credit generation.