Ronchi Plantation - Conversion to Long Rotation Saw Log

Ronchi Plantation - Conversion to Long Rotation Saw Log is a Plantation Forestry project located approximately 20km south of Traralgon in the Wellington Shire region of Victoria. It was registered in March 2026 and covers a project area of 34.12 hectares.

The Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative, Plantation Forestry) Methodology Determination 2022 enables landholders and plantation operators to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) by sequestering carbon in plantation forests and permanent plantings. Standard requirements for this methodology include establishing and maintaining a comprehensive Forest Management Plan, utilizing the FullCAM modeling software to calculate carbon stock, and committing to either a 25-year or 100-year permanence period.

The Wellington Shire and the greater Gippsland region are well known for a mix of intensive forestry operations, dairy cattle farming, and other agricultural activities. Situated near the Strzelecki Ranges, the area typically experiences high rainfall. The local soils generally range from acidic loams over clay to rich volcanic and sedimentary profiles, making the region highly favorable for commercial timber growth.

This specific project sequesters carbon by converting an existing short-rotation plantation forest into a long-rotation forest designed for the commercial harvesting of wood products, such as saw logs. By allowing the trees to mature over a longer period rather than harvesting them early for pulpwood, the project ensures that greater amounts of carbon are securely stored within both the ongoing forest biomass and the resulting long-lived timber products.