Lochiel Carbon Project 10

Lochiel Carbon Project 10 is a soil carbon sequestration project located in the Mid North region of South Australia, situated near the township of Lochiel, approximately 130km north of Adelaide. Registered in January 2026, the project covers a land area of roughly 308 hectares. The site sits within a predominantly agricultural landscape known for mixed farming, where broadacre cropping of cereals like wheat and barley is frequently combined with livestock grazing.

The project operates under the 2021 Soil Carbon (Measurement and Models) methodology. This framework rewards landholders for increasing the amount of organic carbon stored in their soil, a process that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. To achieve this, the project activities involve applying specific nutrients (synthetic or non-synthetic fertilizers) to address soil deficiencies and integrating legume species into cropping or pasture systems. These management changes are designed to boost plant biomass production, which in turn increases the organic matter returned to the soil.

The environmental context of the Lochiel region poses specific challenges and opportunities for soil carbon farming. The area experiences a Mediterranean climate with cool, moist winters and hot, dry summers, typically receiving annual rainfall between 350mm and 400mm. The soils in this vicinity, often described as red loams or calcareous soils, are historically low in organic carbon (often below 1.5%) and can be structurally unstable. However, this low baseline offers significant potential for uplift if management practices can successfully overcome moisture limitations.

The project is managed by Agriprove Solutions, a prominent soil carbon project developer in Australia. The "10" in the project name suggests this is part of a larger aggregation of projects in the Lochiel district, potentially allowing for economies of scale in soil sampling and management. Agriprove has a history of activity in South Australia; their "Lynch Carbon Project" was the first in the state to be issued Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs), demonstrating the viability of soil carbon projects in South Australian conditions.