Private landholders hold the key to conservation

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The need to better protect Australia’s unique ecosystems is once again in the spotlight. In a recent Australian Geographic opinion piece, Dr Kate Dodds, Chief Technical Officer at Corporate Carbon Group, shared her perspective on how private landholders are central to achieving Australia’s conservation goals.

The article explores the path to meeting Australia’s 30 by 30 conservation target. This goal aims to protect 30 percent of the nation’s land and sea areas by 2030. With over 60 percent of land in Australia privately managed, the success of this target will depend on engaging and supporting landholders with practical, long-term solutions.

As Kate outlines in the piece, carbon and conservation work are increasingly intertwined. With the right mix of policy certainty, market frameworks and technical guidance, landholders can be supported to deliver positive environmental outcomes while continuing to run productive businesses.

This opportunity is already being explored in parts of Corporate Carbon’s project portfolio. Over the past 15 years, we have worked with landholders across more than ​​100 land-based carbon initiatives. Many of these involve co-benefits for biodiversity or operate within designated nature refuges, such as the Crystalvale Nature Refuge in Queensland.

At Crystalvale, native ecosystems are protected under a private protected area agreement while carbon farming activities support revegetation and provide a new income stream through the ACCU Scheme. This approach allows the land to remain in productive use while also delivering conservation value.

The recent Australian Geographic article highlights that unlocking these kinds of outcomes at scale will require coordinated policy and market support. Tools like the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act, Nature Repair Market, and Queensland’s NatureAssist program can all play a role, but will need to align under a broader, long-term vision.

As interest in carbon and nature-based markets grows, the focus must remain on quality, integrity and practical support for those on the ground. Landholders will continue to be key players in this space, and it is their expertise and commitment that will help drive progress.