Waterhole North' Environmental Planting Project

'Waterhole North' Environmental Planting Project is a reforestation initiative located at Rollands Plains, approximately 40km northwest of Port Macquarie in New South Wales. Registered in August 2024, the project covers 30.07 hectares in the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council area. The region is characterized by its high rainfall and rolling hinterland terrain, where land use has historically been dominated by cattle grazing and forestry operations.

This project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) (Reforestation by Environmental or Mallee Plantings-FullCAM) Methodology Determination 2014. This methodology incentivizes the establishing of permanent native forests on land that was previously cleared for agricultural use. To be eligible, the planting must include species native to the local area and be planted at a density sufficient to achieve forest cover, typically requiring at least 200 stems per hectare. The carbon sequestration is modelled using the FullCAM software, which estimates biomass growth based on local climate and soil data.

The environment at Rollands Plains supports vigorous vegetation growth due to its status as a high-rainfall zone. The local soils are typically a mix of alluvial loams near watercourses and clay-based soils (often Kurosols or Ferrosols) on the slopes, providing a fertile foundation for the mixed-species native trees being established. The proponent, Carbon Fix Pty Limited, specifically targets high-rainfall areas for their projects to maximize carbon yield and co-benefits such as biodiversity improvement. This specific project converts land used for agriculture for at least the last five years into a permanent carbon sink.