ACCU Scheme methods

Australian Carbon Credit Unit Scheme methods

ACCU Scheme methods cover projects across:

• Agriculture
• Energy efficiency
• Landfill and waste
• Mining, oil and gas
• Transport
• Vegetation

Agriculture methods

Agriculture method projects reduce farming and land emissions.

Project activities for these methods include:

• recycling and reusing animal waste
• storing carbon in soil
• switching farm animal diets and fertilisers.

• Animal effluent management method

  Recycle and reuse animal waste through an eligible animal waste treatment facility.

• Estimating soil organic carbon sequestration using measurement and models method

  Demonstrate an increase in soil carbon above the baseline level by testing and sampling soil.

• Estimating sequestration of carbon in soil using default values method

  Measure increases in carbon stored in soil with Full Carbon Accounting Model (FullCAM) data.

• Fertiliser in irrigated cotton method

  Regional farms can switch their fertilisers for irrigating cotton to reduce emissions.

Energy efficiency methods

Projects under energy efficiency methods reduce electricity and natural gas use. Project activities for these methods include:

• upgrading to more energy efficient equipment
• installing new energy efficient equipment.
   

Choose an energy efficiency method using our energy efficiency and transport methods decision tree and comparison table.

• Aggregated small energy users method

  Work with an accredited statistician to improve energy efficiency of homes and small businesses.

• Commercial buildings method

  Owners of commercial buildings can run projects to lower their National Australian Build Environment Rating System (NABERS) rating by at least one star.

• Facilities method

  National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) Scheme facilities can run projects that reduce industrial site greenhouse gas emissions.

• High efficiency commercial appliances method

  Building owners can improve energy efficiency by upgrading or replacing cooling appliances.

• Industrial and commercial emissions reduction method

  Industrial or commercial businesses can improve energy efficiency by reducing business emissions.

• Industrial equipment upgrade method

  Businesses can run projects to upgrade or replace their heating or cooling appliances.

• Refrigeration and ventilation fans method

  Commercial or industry businesses can reduce emissions by upgrading or replacing refrigeration and ventilation fans.

Landfill and waste methods

Landfill and waste method projects upgrade or install facilities to reduce waste emissions.

Project activities for these methods include:

• treating and destroying waste using eligible waste treatment equipment
• converting waste into biomethane to produce electricity
• separating organic waste from other waste.

• Alternative waste treatment method

  Recycle waste instead of sending it to be landfill through eligible waste treatment technology.

• Landfill gas method

  Reduce methane emitted from landfill waste by upgrading or installing a new landfill gas collection system.

• Landfill gas (generation) method

  Convert waste into biomethane to produce electricity, or into carbon dioxide for easier destruction. This is achieved with equipment to convert or destroy landfill gas.

• Source separated organic waste method

  Businesses in the food, garden waste or hospitality industry can separate organic waste from landfill waste.

• Domestic, commercial and industrial wastewater method

  Treat waste in anaerobic digesters instead of open lagoons to reduce emissions entering the atmosphere.

Mining, oil and gas methods

Mining, oil and gas method projects re-route, flare or combust leaked facility emissions.

Project activities for these methods include:

• storing greenhouse gases underground
• destroying or converting coal mine gas and oil and gas leaks.

• Carbon capture and storage method

  Inject greenhouse emissions from oil and gas activities underground for permanent storage.

• Coal mine waste gas method

  Destruct or convert gas emitting from underground coal mines to reduce emissions.

• Oil and gas fugitives method

  Destruct or convert methane that emits from oil and gas leaks.

Transport methods

Transport method projects upgrade aviation, sea and land vehicles to reduce emissions.

Project activities for these methods include:

• reducing domestic aircraft emissions
• minimising land and sea transport vehicle emissions.

• Aviation method

  Improve domestic route aircraft efficiency to reduce emissions.

• Land and sea transport method

  Improve land and sea transport vehicle efficiency to reduce emissions.

Vegetation methods

Vegetation method projects remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it as carbon in plants.

Project activities for these methods include:

• reforestation
• revegetation
• managing safe fire burning practices
• protecting native forest or vegetation at imminent risk of clearing.

All vegetation projects have permanence obligations and must record fuel use for sequestration.

Find a method suitable for you in our soil and vegetation sequestration decision tree, evidence required for regeneration sequestration projects and requirements for all planting projects.

• Avoided clearing of native regrowth method

  Retain and maintain native forestry in Queensland, Australia.

• Designated verified carbon standard projects method

  Protect and maintain native forestry with a Verified Carbon Standard approval.

• Plantation forestry method

  Establish, convert or transition to forestry plantations.

• Reforestation and afforestation method

  Plant trees in belt or block configurations, or a combination of both, to establish a permanent forest formation.

• Savanna fire management methods

  Manage and plan savanna fire activities that burn in north Australia to reduce emissions.

• Tidal restoration of blue carbon ecosystems method

  Reintroduce tidal flow to coastal wetland ecosystems for blue carbon storage.

• Reforestation by environmental or mallee plantings FullCAM method 2024

  Plant trees to store carbon and earn Australian carbon credit units.