This consultation is now closed
We are currently reviewing submissions and will publish the outcomes of the consultation on this page.
We’re seeking your views on the effectiveness and efficiency of the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative) (Audit Thresholds) Instrument 2015.
The Audit Thresholds Instrument will sunset and be repealed on 1 April 2025. Your feedback will help inform a new Audit Thresholds Instrument.
As part of the consultation, we’re also seeking feedback on whether alternative assurance arrangements should be extended to the new reforestation by environmental or mallee plantings method.
We’re not proposing to increase the audit burden for projects that are already registered.
Background
The current Audit Thresholds Instrument is used to set the audit schedule for Australian Carbon Credit Unit (ACCU) Scheme projects. It prescribes thresholds for different types of audits, including scheduled audits and triggered audits. It also sets requirements for alternative assurance projects that may be eligible for a reduced number of audits.
The first projects eligible for alternative assurance were low-risk environmental plantings projects. As a key component of the environmental plantings pilot, alternative assurance opened up scheme participation for small-scale projects (less than 200 hectares) by reducing audit costs.
The environmental plantings method has now sunset, and a new method was made in November 2024. This is an opportunity to reflect on what we have learned from the environmental plantings pilot. We can then consider whether we should extend alternative assurance arrangements to the new reforestation by environmental or mallee plantings method and if we need to make changes to the arrangements.
Our risk-based approach to compliance ensures that audits target situations where they can provide the greatest value in supporting scheme integrity.
Timeline
- Opened: 18 November 2024
- Closed: 15 December 2024
Next steps
We will review all submissions and use them to draft the new Audit Thresholds Instrument 2025.
You’ll then be invited to provide feedback on this draft during a consultation in early 2025.
We will publish more information about implications for existing ACCU Scheme participants before the sunsetting date on 1 April 2025.