GRANTS programs providing $15 million to help farmers and researchers establish and monitor carbon abatement projects are not a "green wash", Agriculture and Food Minister Alannah MacTiernan stressed.
The programs announced over the past nine months, provide "an opportunity for those farmers who want to explore doing something differently" to de-risk their project by applying for a State government grant to cover "up front" costs, Ms MacTiernan said.
They are also expected to help provide WA-specific data on effectiveness of carbon sequestration and soil carbon building that may help evolve local methodologies and practices, with education programs and onfarm mentoring proposed through local grower groups to spread the knowledge.
"What we will get out of these programs is absolutely more understanding of what works, what doesn't work and what really has potential," Ms MacTiernan said at the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development headquarters on Monday to announce expressions of interest were open for first round grants under the $15m Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program.
"We're not talking about growing blue gum plantations on cropping land, this is not a green wash,'' she said.
"South West WA is acknowledged as an area most likely to get hotter and drier with climate change.
"Part of (the cause of) that is land clearing and part of it is carbon pollution.
"Both of those things we can help deal with by strategic planting programs that also add to diversity and help control erosion.
"There's good agricultural reasons to do it, there's financial incentives to do it and farmers understand that if they want to leave a farm that is sustainable for their children and grandchildren, then they have to build up their natural capital.
"We (the State government) think it makes sense for farmers to go down this path, but there are lots of upfront costs, so we've come to the party and provided some financial assistance to de-risk these types of projects for farmers.
"Carbon farming offers growers a long-term, diversified income stream, while driving farm sustainability, productivity and profitability and moving towards carbon neutrality to meet market expectations.
"There are lots of farmers out there in Kulin and Beacon and Perenjori in the low rainfall areas who are doing something different and we want to give as many farmers as possible the opportunity to try that.
"Agriculture has been painted as the problem child in dealing with climate change but we actually believe there is great potential for agriculture to turn this around.
"If agriculture can become a major sequester of carbon, we will become part of the solution to climate change and this is very exciting and will give us a more sustainable farming system.
"If we don't do something on our agricultural land to help the rest of the community achieve zero emissions by 2050, we are not going to be able to meet that commitment."
Ms MacTiernan said that under the Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program, there were two grant funding streams available.
One offers upfront funding for new Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) carbon farming soil and vegetation projects that propose to deliver one or more priority co-benefits in return for an agreed number of Australian carbon credit units (ACCUs).
Grants are available to farmers in the South West agriculture land division west of Northampton, Mullewa, Morawa, Southern Cross and the cropping area east of Esperance.
The other funding stream offers grants for soil carbon projects on farms in the South West agriculture land division with average annual growing season rainfall below 350 millimetres, generally east of Moora, Brookton, Kojonup and Mount Barker.
Ms MacTiernan said the projects would generate flow-on benefits by encouraging regional investment, biodiversity and conservation, salinity mitigation, improved soil health, enhanced agricultural productivity and Aboriginal economic and cultural opportunities.
Commercial farm owners, not-for-profit entities undertaking a project under commercial arrangement on a farm and carbon farming developers undertaking a farm project under commercial arrangement are eligible to submit an expression of interest for a Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program grant before Friday, August 20.
She said farmers who received grants and later decided to sell ACCUs accrued by their project would be expected to sign the agreed amount of ACCUs over to the State government or to repay the original grant amount.
Ms MacTiernan said money generated in this way would go back into the program to encourage further projects.
Grant farmers who did not seek ACCUs for their projects would not be required to repay the grant amounts, provided they fulfilled all commitments under their grant agreement.
She said while there were several carbon accreditation schemes, Carbon Farming and Land Restoration Program grants will be available for projects meeting federal ERF guidelines.
As well, under a separate $15m Climate Resilience Fund, Ms MacTiernan said the State government was making funding available to universities and institutions to work with agriculture on sequestration and soil carbon pilot projects, activities and trials.
She said the aim was to potentially develop new or amended ERF carbon sequestration methods, to enhance understanding of farming activities that sequester carbon and to share project data gained from these projects to contribute to a more climate resilient farming industry.
Ms MacTiernan said she believed work the State government had completed during its first term of government to allow pastoralists in the Southern Rangelands to participate in ERF-approved carbon sequestration schemes to generate ACCUs as an extra income stream, had brought about "a huge change in the mindset of those pastoralists up there" about what farm practices were sustainable and financially viable for them.
- More information: go to agric.wa.gov.au/CF-LRP