Aire River Restoration Project

Aire River Restoration Project is an environmental planting project located in the Colac Otway Shire, situated south-west of the Beech Forest township and adjoining the Great Otway National Park in Victoria. It was registered on February 12, 2026, and covers an area of 263.90 hectares, following a spatial variation that added land to the project in May 2026.

Environmental planting projects under the FullCAM methodology involve establishing and maintaining a permanent, mixed-species planting of native trees and shrubs. These plantings are designed to reflect the structure and composition of the local native vegetation community and are established at a density sufficient to reach forest cover, which typically requires a stocking density of at least 200 stems per hectare.

The surrounding Otway Ranges region is predominantly used for forestry, dairy farming, non-dairy grazing, and nature conservation. As the wettest and coolest area in the region, the local environment is considered a high-rainfall climate, experiencing up to 1,900 mm of rain annually in the higher catchment areas. The region's soils generally consist of fertile loams and clay loams, making them highly suitable for sustaining tall wet forests and cool temperate rainforests.

This project was established by the Barwon Region Water Corporation (Barwon Water) to reforest previously cleared land, directly contributing to the corporation's target of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. It is anticipated that the Aire River project could sequester up to 300,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over a 25-year period. In addition to carbon abatement, the project focuses on boosting biodiversity by providing locally sourced habitat for up to 35 threatened plant and animal species and improving the overall health of the Aire River catchment. The initiative also actively engages the Eastern Maar Aboriginal Corporation's Country Guardians team, who collaborate on delivering land management and restorative works on Eastern Maar Country.