The Red Meat industry is committed to a target of net zero emissions by 2030 and Australia is committed to net zero by 2050.
Increasing soil and vegetation carbon is one of the greatest tools we have to reduce emissions and can be achieved through improving farming practices. At the same time, the carbon market is growing, offering new revenue streams for savvy and sustainable farmers.
Farmers want to manage carbon in soil and vegetation to build enterprise profitability, sustainability and resilience as well as respond to market demand and meet carbon targets. But measuring soil and vegetation carbon across vast rangelands can cost millions and even with the data, understanding management options and sequestration potential is difficult.
These factors are major barriers for farmers who want to proactively manage soil, pasture and vegetation health and participate in the carbon market.
The project team is developing models and tools to accurately and affordably estimate soil and vegetation carbon in Australian rangelands, unlocking 75% of the country’s landmass to reach its carbon sequestration potential.
The team will establish a baseline measure of carbon in soil and woody cover vegetation (trees) across Australian rangelands, estimate changes in carbon over time and in response to different landscape management practices, and advise industry on opportunities to improve carbon sequestration.
AACo is Australia’s largest landholder and biggest red meat producer. It owns one per cent (6.4m hectares) of Australia’s landmass across varied landscapes in Queensland and the Northern Territory, making it the ideal data source for the validation of new carbon measurement and modelling approaches that can be scaled for national benefit.
