Restoring Murray Woodlands Biodiversity and Carbon Conservation Tender

⁠⁠⁠The NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust is offering landholders the opportunity to combine protection of eligible remnant woodlands with an environmental plantings pilot carbon project under the Clean Energy Regulator’s Emissions Reduction Fund.  

Participating landholders will bid for annual management payments to manage conservation on remnant areas, as well as establish an environmental plantings pilot carbon project to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs), with a crediting period of 25 years.  

In delivering the tender The NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust is collaborating with the Clean Energy Regulator, Murray Seed Services and Telstra.

Telstra may offer long term contracts to successful landholders to purchase Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) generated over the life of their carbon project. Landholders can also keep their ACCUs or contract to another party.

The NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust will fund high integrity environmental plantings in the carbon project area and provide an opportunity for biodiversity maintenance payments beyond the carbon crediting period. Both the areas of remnant vegetation and carbon project areas will be secured under an in-perpetuity conservation agreement. 

The NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust is calling for expressions of interest (EOI) from landholders willing to enter an in-perpetuity conservation agreement with the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust and register an environmental plantings pilot project with The Clean Energy Regulator.

To be eligible applicants must: 

• Own land in an area bounded by the Murray River to the south and major roads through Albury, Holbrook, Henty, Jerilderie, Deniliquin, Moulamein and Barham. (See tender map) << live link >>
• Own private freehold land covering an area at least 20 ha, comprising a combination of:

1. patch(es) of priority threatened woodland ecosystem including Inland Grey Box Woodland, Sandhill Pine Woodland, Buloke Woodland or White Box-Yellow Box-Blakley’s Red Gum Grassy Woodland, in suitable condition, totalling a minimum 5 ha
2. adjoining area/s suitable for a environmental plantings pilot carbon project of at least 5 ha and not exceeding 50 ha, at least 30m wide, and not exceeding three times the remnant priority threatened woodland area
3. areas of non-priority native vegetation are in moderate to good condition

• be willing to register an environmental planting pilot project with The Clean Energy Regulator (CER) prior to entering a conservation agreement with the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust, and
• be willing to enter into an in-perpetuity conservation agreement with the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust
• Propose a carbon plantings area which has been clear of forest cover for at least 5years prior to the date of application
• Propose a carbon plantings area that does not have woody biomass or an invasive native shrub species required or authorised by law to be cleared.

For further site and applicant eligibility criteria for a conservation agreement and an environmental plantings pilot carbon project, refer to the Restoring Murray Woodlands Biodiversity and Carbon Conservation Tender landholder guide. 

Inquiries: For more information phone 1300 992 688 or email info@bct.nsw.gov.au