Sequestration of Carbon from Soil Carbon QLD1

Sequestration of Carbon from Soil Carbon QLD1 is a soil carbon project located approximately 55km south-east of Townsville, sitting within the Burdekin region of North Queensland. It was registered in June 2025 and initially covered a project area of 1838.63 hectares. The surrounding Burdekin landscape is historically utilized for pastoral grazing, particularly beef cattle, alongside intensive irrigated agriculture like sugarcane and horticulture closer to the coast.

Operating under the 2021 Estimation of Soil Organic Carbon Sequestration using Measurement and Models methodology, soil carbon projects aim to capture and store atmospheric carbon within agricultural soils. Standard scheme requirements dictate that proponents must introduce one or more new, eligible land management activities to build soil carbon stocks, and then demonstrate these increases through rigorous soil sampling, laboratory analysis, or approved modeling techniques. This specific project achieves its carbon sequestration goals by applying gypsum to remediate sodic or magnesic soils, applying synthetic or non-synthetic fertilizers to address material nutrient deficiencies, and establishing new irrigation systems.

The local environment sits within a dry tropical to semi-arid climate characterized by highly seasonal summer rainfall and dry winters. Soils in this region are often highly variable, frequently including Vertosols (cracking clays), Kandosols, and Sodosols. The targeted application of gypsum indicates that the local soil profile presents sodic or magnesic challenges, which can severely restrict water infiltration and pasture growth if not actively managed.

An interesting aspect of this project is its corporate proponent, Rio Tinto Energy Services Pty Ltd. This initiative aligns with the mining company's broader strategic shift toward investing in nature-based solutions to generate high-quality Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) for offsetting its operational emissions. Rio Tinto is actively developing a broader carbon portfolio in this area, which includes a nearby 372-hectare environmental planting project (ERF203395), and has secured major, multi-year ACCU offtake agreements with local Queensland councils. Furthermore, registry records show a project area variation occurred on March 30, 2026, which formally removed certain land portions from the initial project boundary.