Key Messages

• This project will investigate the carbon sequestration potential in existing local saltbush plantings.
• This project will evaluate of the performance of new saltbush plantings across different species and planting densities
• This project will track the growth and carbon sequestration of new saltbush plantings over the next 7 years.

Project Aim:

This project will assess the viability of Saltbush to sequester carbon and provide data to enable the development of a Methodology under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) Act 2011. A time-sequencing approach will be used to measure actual sequestration rates using existing stands aged up to 35 years. This component will provide a report on the viability of a saltbush-based Methodology in year two of the project.

Concurrently, we will establish two new planting sites to become the basis for further investigation, including estimation of C sequestration with different saltbush species, planting densities and site management.

Project Background:

There is around 1 million ha of saline land in the WA Wheatbelt and semi-saline land that has also been taken out of production. There is not currently a Methodology under the CFI Act for saltbush plantings; recent research at Murdoch University (Liu et al. 2017; Walden et al. 2017) has shown the potential for this to occur in a cross-Australia study. The activities in this project will be used to make a case for a Methodology; this will unlock very large amounts of sequestration potential- a national estimate of sequestration potential is 4-13 Mt CO2-e/yr.

Saltbush species under investigation include Atriplex anameka, Atriplex amnicola, Atriplex nummularia and Atriplex semibaccata.

Further Information:

Project Start Date 1 October 2022

Project End Date: 30 June 2029.

Project Funding: Wheatbelt NRM has secured funding from the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development’s Western Australian Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program – Future Carbon Scheme.

Project Lead: Wheatbelt Natural Resource Management Incorporated.        

Project Collaborators: The project is a partnership between Wheatbelt NRM (WNRM), The Facey Group (Facey), The Corrigin Farm Improvement Group (CFIG) and Murdoch University (Murdoch).

Host Farmers: Ashley and Jo Wiese, Yarranabee Holdings Pty Ltd

                            Rod, Jenny, Jeremy and Mitchell Wiles, Marwonga Nominees Pty Ltd