Australia’s green bank River Capital and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) have pledged to invest in Australia’s largest First Nations-led carbon initiative in the Tiwi Islands, Northern Territory.
The project, which will involve planting 30,000 hectares of a eucalyptus tree native to Northeastern Queensland, is projected to generate around five million nature-based Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs) over the life of the project.
The CEFC is investing up to AU$40 million alongside River Capital in the AU$81 million project, which is also expected to produce approximately 12 million cubic metres of high-value wood products.
The initiative is projected to increase Australia’s total plantation area by approximately 2 per cent, meeting international demand for high-quality timber products.
The plantation will support long-term carbon storage through the sustainable timber used in construction and reduce reliance on native forests.
Heechung Sung, CEFC Head of Natural Capital, said: “We are incredibly proud to support and empower the Tiwi Islands communities to achieve greater economic equity in the energy transition.
“Sustainable forestry plays an important role in Australia’s low carbon future, and with this project, we are creating new commercial investment models for meaningful collaboration with Indigenous communities. This investment has created a forestry industry to drive economic opportunity that will endure for generations to come.”
The Tiwi Plantations Corporation is owned, operated and governed by all eight Tiwi clans.
The plantation initiative will deliver substantial economic benefits for the Tiwi community, including training and employment opportunities.
Kim Puruntatameri, Chair of the Tiwi Plantations Corporation said: “The Tiwi Plantations Corporation represents the land for our people. We’ve got to look after the land very well for the next generation coming.
“To keep the environment strong, we need to work together with people from outside. If we work together as one, we’re going to get there, we must listen to one another.
“Tiwi knowledge and our culture are the most important things, we need to pass the knowledge on to our grandkids.”