Across Australia, farmers, Traditional Owners and other land managers are doing the hard work of capturing or reducing carbon emissions by adapting how they manage the land. They are real climate heroes that we support through our projects.
There are four types of carbon projects that Go Neutral supports.
- Regeneration Projects
- Protection Projects
- Savanna Burning Projects
- Soil Projects
Here’s what they are and how they work:
Regeneration Projects
These work to regenerate native vegetation on land that has become degraded – often through overgrazing or clearing. These projects involve working with farmers to change land management practices to allow native vegetation to regrow. They also incorporate a commitment from the farmer to maintain the regenerated forest or bushlands for up to 100 years.
Changes in land management often include installing new fencing so that livestock can be moved around instead of being allowed to overgraze certain areas, installing water points across farms to encourage livestock and wildlife to move more widely and graze less intensively, and in some cases humanely managing feral animal populations so that they don’t destroy emerging regrowth.
Regenerating landscapes like the one on the right, gradually regain groundcover (grasses) and can feature juvenile bushes and trees as well as new shoots.
Regeneration projects have multiple benefits for the land, native species and regional communities.
The Land – increased vegetation improves the overall health of the land. Vegetated land is better able to absorb and retain moisture, which makes it more resilient in the face of drought and able to bounce back better after challenging conditions. Increased vegetation also prevents erosion and the runoff of sediment into waterways.
Native Species – regeneration projects regrow native species rather than plant new species, so they help increase stocks of uniquely Australian trees and bushes including eucalypts, mulgas, bloodwood trees and many others. The regenerated forests and bushlands become home to native wildlife, creating important wildlife corridors and supporting some threatened or vulnerable species.
Regional Communities – the money that flows back to the farmers for their regenerative work often gets reinvested back into the land, paying for fencing, firebreaks and other farming infrastructure. Local businesses and contractors are often employed to do these works and jobs are also created as a result.
Protection Projects
These projects ensure that important areas of native forest are protected from clearing.
Australia has lost 40-50% of its forests since European colonisation, and today, is the only OECD country in the world’s top 10 land clearing nations.
Protection projects involve working with farmers to identify areas of land that have been cleared in the past and are at risk of being cleared in the future, and ensuring that a new cycle of clearing does not take place. Farmers have to commit to not clearing the land for between 25-100 years, ensuring these native forests are maintained as important carbon sinks and as habitat for native species including koalas.
SAVANNAH BURNING PROJECTS
SOIL PROJECTS
Some of our projects
REVIVING NATIVE HABITAT IN QLD
Sitting on ancient land within Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef catchment area, this Catchment Conservation Alliance project is regenerating 2,300 hectares of native forest on land that’s historically been cleared for pasture.
REPAIRING RANGELANDS IN WA
In the vast rangelands of Western Australia, this project is regenerating over 37,000 hectares of native forest and shrublands in a region historically recognised for spectacular wildflowers and abundant birdlife.
CARBON PROJECTS AND HOW THEY WORK
Carbon dioxide can be naturally captured in soil, plants, trees, shrubs, wetlands, and even microorganisms, however too much carbon dioxide can be detrimental to the health of our planet. We unpack the carbon cycle, impacts of excess carbon, and how carbon projects help to remove carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
THE IMPORTANCE OF TREES AND PLANTS
Trees and plants are vital for a healthy, functioning planet. They clean our dirty air, store carbon in their trunks and branches, and filter our water resources. So it should come as no surpise that planting, preserving, and restoring trees and plants is vital to saving our planet from the negative impacts caused by climate change.
HOW ARE CARBON PROJECTS MEASURED?
We thoroughly screen all the projects that we source from to make sure the carbon credits that we purchase and surrender on behalf of our customers are real and high quality. But how do we actually know how much carbon these projects sequester, and how do we use science to determine their integrity?