The project is committed to investigating the potential for generating carbon credits in the project area in a similar way that Indigenous organisations have been successful in northern Australia with savannah burning projects.
South Pole has been commissioned to undertaken a feasibility study to address the Australian Government’s prioritisation criteria for method development under the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF). Work on the feasibility is due to be complete by late 2019.
Depending on the outcomes of the feasibility study, the project may support the development of a method to generate carbon credits able to be sold to the ERF or voluntary markets, or alternatively seek to investigate the development of carbon credits for sale on the voluntary market only using international standards.
In addition, the project will be investigating the development of co-benefits that can provide a premium price for carbon credits or more importantly be able to be sold and traded separate to carbon credits. Co-benefits refer to social, cultural and environmental benefits that are derived from the land management activities associated with the generation of carbon credits, particularly through the use of cool season burning.
In a standalone version (with a link to carbon credits), co-benefits may include payments for ecosystem services (PES) or new products such as healthy country credits which are aligned to national and international commitments such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
