South West NRM was pleased to host Minister for Agriculture and Food the Hon. Jackie Jarvis on Friday for her announcement of a $3.2 million State Government investment toward six reforestation and two soil carbon projects under the latest round of the Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program.
The projects support farmers to utilise less productive land for carbon farming projects which has the dual benefit of increasing productivity while enhancing sustainability and climate resilience.
South West NRM provided input on development of two of the successful reforestation projects through initial site assessments and recommendations on suitable endemic species and planting methods.
The two projects SWNRM assisted with are:
Locherbie Carbon Project
A 55-hectare reforestation project on Bronwen O’Sullivan’s property in Cuballing. which will connect remnant vegetation in 14 planting areas and re-establish habitat in the Dryandra Woodland for native fauna such as numbats.
Kunmallup Tree Project
Involves 232 hectares of biodiverse plantings across low productivity land on Bindi Murray’s Woodanilling farm to provide cover, connect remnant vegetation with nearby reserves, and reduce salinity.
All eight projects span more than 7,300 hectares and are set to remove a projected 395,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere over the next 25 years.
South West NRM CEO Dr Manda Page said sustainable agriculture formed one of two focus areas for the region’s peak environmental organisation.
“Sustainable agriculture is focused on driving farming efficiencies while maintaining the health of soil and water resources, supporting biodiversity, reducing emissions and building resilience to climate change,” Dr Page said.
“Under this banner, supporting our farmers to establish carbon farming projects ticks all the boxes and we are glad to have been involved in a range of both State and Federal initiatives designed to spur on the practice.”
In announcing the latest projects, Minister Jarvis said: “Carbon farming projects offer income diversification opportunities for farmers, along with a range of environmental and community benefits, and it is fantastic to see many of these projects utilise the expertise and knowledge of Indigenous service providers and local land care group.”
“The scale and diversity of these projects demonstrates carbon farming can integrate with ongoing farming activities and increase climate resilience and sustainability.”
You can read more about our work in this space HERE.
