Carbon Farming… it’s not ROCKET science!

4 Steps to a Carbon Farming Project, AND questions to ask Project Developers

Carbon Farming – it’s not rocket science, but we hear you: “It’s complex,” and “The rules are hard to understand”. We understand that this ‘new age’ industry has had its challenges.

So how do we protect the rights of Farmers? These are really good questions and challenges. We’ll explore them all. Along with,

Is it worth it? How big will demand be?

In one report, we read:

…demand for carbon credits could increase by a factor of 15 or more by 2030 and by a factor of up to 100 by 2050. Overall, the market for carbon credits could be worth upward of $50 billion in 2030.

There is no doubt that as the world reaches for solutions to the warming climate, Carbon Farming, and nature-based solutions, in general, are key. If we don’t use the photosynthetic ability of trees/plants/seaweed and other levers, it is simply the case that the world cannot reach the Paris Climate Agreement targets in time.

No, I’m not advocating ANYTHING as a silver bullet, and YES, we need ALL solutions, but Agriculture and nature also FEED us and provide the resilience we need to adapt to the changes.

In short, it is essential to engage with these opportunities, not just for now, but for the evolution in sophistication of methods that will follow if we broaden this market.

This demand comes now and will continue to come from countries and organisations who have made pledges for carbon reduction targets but have no way of developing reductions themselves. They can reduce their own emissions, but not eliminate them. They need us to do that.

Raphael Wood from Market Advisory Group will speak to us about these fundamental market issues: will outline the basics of the demand side of the Australian carbon market that farmers may want to engage in.

Let’s explore – how do I implement a Carbon Farming Project?

The four steps to a Project – in a very simplistic way, the Clean Energy Regulator (CER) outlines the process as:

1. Apply
2. Contracts and Auctions
3. Reporting and Auditing
4. Contract Management, delivery, and payment.

As the comparison site advertisement says, “Simples!”

However, it’s true that the complexity lies within those steps and can be time-consuming to navigate. Who needs it when you’ve got another job to get done?

THIS IS WHY we have the rise and rise of ‘Carbon Project Developers’. These are organisations, many of which will be at the conference, who have taken the time to navigate these questions and have business models to assist farmers to ‘get a credit’.

Here are some important questions to ask as you navigate the 40 trade exhibits:

1. Does the organisation hold an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL)?
   This is important because an ACCU is a financial instrument (like a share) and so anyone who doesn’t have access to an AFSL can’t talk about anything to do with the sales of the credits, OR suggest you should keep them.
2. Are they signatories to the Carbon Market Institute’s code of conduct?
   This code promotes best practice carbon market integrity, transparency, and accountability for Australian consumers
3. Who will ‘own’ the project?
   The project proponent needs to have the legal right to carry out the project. This can be the owner, or the project developer if the landholder agrees to enable them to have the legal right. What are the implications of each?
4. What are my obligations, how long will the income last, and what are the risks?
5. Who else needs to agree to the project – e.g., banks who hold a mortgage, etc.?
6. Who should I go to for legal advice?
7. What about accounting advice?
   Scott Christian of Boyce Accountants will be speaking on this.

Lots to learn, and it’s ALL under one roof, so register now.
Only 12 days to go – can’t wait!

Onwards!

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