Enabling blue carbon markets

Tidal reinstatement [available now] 

The blue carbon method enables Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs) to be earned by projects that remove or modify tidal restriction mechanisms and allow tidal flow to be introduced to an area of land. This results in the rewetting of completely or partially drained coastal wetland ecosystems and the conversion of freshwater wetlands to brackish or saline wetlands.  

The method enables ACCUs to be earned for the establishment of coastal wetland ecosystems that occurs as a result of project activities. There are three components within coastal wetland ecosystems that contribute to carbon abatement for a blue carbon project: 

1. Soil carbon sequestration (through vertical accretion).
2. Carbon sequestered in above and below ground vegetation biomass.
3. Emissions avoided from introducing tidal flow. 

Read more about the Tidal Reinstatement methodology 

Exclusion Fencing [in development] 

Blue Carbon Lab is undertaking research to evaluate fencing as a low-cost method for coastal wetland restoration and supporting the development of an exclusion fencing method under the Emissions Reduction Fund. This method intends to achieve marketable blue carbon and other ecosystem service benefits to support farmers in transitioning increasingly marginal farming areas into productive wetland ecosystems by excluding non-native ungulates from coastal wetland ecosystems.  

Inland migration of coastal wetland ecosystems (accommodation space) [in development] 

Blue Carbon Lab is undertaking research to assess the migration of coastal wetland ecosystems under future sea-level rise. This information is vital to developing a proposal for a new blue carbon method that incorporates land use planning (e.g., the decision to not install barriers) for sea level rise to allow inland migration of coastal wetland ecosystems, also known as accommodation space.