One of Australia's biggest biodiversity plantings begins after 25 per cent indigenous employment reached

A company has started one of Australia’s biggest biodiversity planting endeavours in the Mid West, with plans to plant 2.6 million seedlings over the next month. The planting team from Perth-based decarbonisation company Nativ Carbon has begun its carbon offset work in Coorow. The project began at the start of July, with the planting spanning 5400 hectares. The operation has harnessed more than 50 staff, across six sub-contractors, including two Aboriginal businesses and 12 Indigenous employees, with the company reaching its target of 25 per cent Indigenous employment in their planting team. Gambara, an Indigenous-owned environmental consultant, has been involved in hiring local Yued people around Moora, as well as Badgebup Aboriginal Corporation, based near Katanning. The company have previously worked with Woodside, planting 1.2 million seedlings across farmland in the Wheatbelt to offset the mining giant’s carbon emissions. Co-director of Nativ Carbon, Matthew Oswald, said they continued to source as many local people as possible for its large-scale planting projects. “This provides an important boost for regional and Indigenous employment,” Mr Oswald said. “We are very much invested in this industry and region. We plan to grow our capacity each year and it remains our intention to genuinely offer long-term employment for Aboriginal people.” Last week, the start of planting was commemorated by a welcome to country event attended by Yued elders Colin Headland, June Headland and Beverley Port-Louis. Ms Port-Louis has been working with Nativ Carbon for the past two years in assisting the company to hire Aboriginal people from the Moora area. “Nativ Carbon’s work in Coorow this year and Moora last year was a good opportunity for the Yued community to participate in regional employment and learn new skills in carbon farming,” she said. The end goal is clear for co-director David Lullfitz, who aims to work alongside oil and gas companies in order to scale up habitat restoration and foster biodiversity. “Banksias feature prominently because they are a major source of food for endangered Carnaby Cockatoos which frequent the area,” he said. “Woody Pear is iconic to the region and a special effort was made again to collect the seeds from nearby populations.” The planting is done as carbon offsetting, and enables industry to deliver its decarbonisation commitments in WA, through environmental plantings of native flora. The operations generate ACCUs (Australian Carbon Credit Units) for its customers.