The Carbon Market Institute (CMI) brought over 330 people from across Australia to the northern NSW region to discuss the opportunities, benefits and frustrations with carbon farming and nature repair policies crucial to the Government’s emission reduction and Future Made in Australia agenda.
The 2-day Carbon Farming Industry Forum was held for the ninth time with a theme of Scaling Carbon, Nature and Investment. Picturesque Lennox Head provided the backdrop for sector participants to engage and network with farmers, landowners, carbon project managers, Indigenous groups, service providers and others.
The Forum also included site visits to local farms hosting regional carbon projects to see how Australian Carbon Credits Units (ACCUs) are being developed and see local climate and nature benefits.
After two days of discussions and debate, key themes have emerged that include but also go beyond the immediate concern of timely method development and slipping timelines for outstanding integrity reforms.
“The carbon farming industry has come a long way in the 13 years since the passage of the Carbon Farming Initiative legislation under the Gillard Government and just over a decade since the first auction under Tony Abbott’s Emission Reduction Fund,” said John Connor, CEO CMI.
The industry has generated over two thirds of ACCUs which traded over a billion dollars in value last year and provide crucial support to the reformed Safeguard Mechanism as large emitters invest in climate solutions backed by ACCUs to help meet accelerating compliance responsibilities.
The Safeguard Mechanism and ACCU framework are central planks of the Albanese Government’s emission reduction policies soon to be integrated in stronger 2035 targets as well as land and agriculture and other net zero sectoral plans.
“Industry representatives welcomed the policy certainty provided by the return of the Government and keenly engaged discussions on how they can provide the investment necessary to meet the productivity goals and climate and nature commitments of the Government.”
“The Forum heard of irritations and frustrations with delays in implementation timelines that has some winding back capacity at a time when we should be scaling up, but also discussed industry milestones that can form the basis of a revised Carbon Farming Industry Roadmap.”
“There as a clear urgency in discussing new ACCU methods under consideration to address a current shortfall in availability of land-based methods that is restricting industry investment and engagement.
“Potential methods for Savanna burning enhancement and Integrated Farm and Land Management have faced slipping deadlines and will now align with four new methods for native forest management, avoided landclearing, wetlands protection and extended Savanna Fire management.”
“We look forward to recent commitments and a new vigour from the returned Albanese Government building on the work of Minister Chris Bowen and Assistant Minister Josh Wilson.”
Sessions also discussed the need for a community wide, consultative and whole of landscape approach so that carbon market build investor and community confidence and ensure benefits can be enjoyed by all participants, and flow on to the broader rural and regional communities.
Indigenous leaders called for early engagement with traditional owners so that projects are co-developed and provide clear mutual benefits that increase first nation peoples access to country, management and ownership.
This was echoed by farmers who want to assure that decarbonisation solutions are developed in partnership. With the help of farmers, carbon farming and emergent nature repair market opportunities can be integrated into and expand agricultural productivity and climate resilience.
The Forum also heard calls for integrated research and development programs for national and state governments, as well as industry, so that outcomes and industry experience from recent technological advances in monitoring, reporting and verification can be paired with academic analysis.
“CMI and the industry are stepping up their work in research, integrity and investment. CMI is making reforms to the content and management of the Carbon Industry Code of Conduct and is researching investment opportunities for carbon and nature commitments. CMI will develop a third version of its Carbon Farming Industry Roadmap that integrates nature repair industry milestones for publication in 2026,” concluded Connor.
