Improved forest management in multiple-use public native forests method

Your project must stop harvesting timber in areas of public native forest included in carbon protection areas within the project area. This results in:

• carbon sequestration in trees and debris that remain in the project area and would otherwise have been reduced by harvesting
• avoided greenhouse gas emissions from no longer burning after harvests.

As well as stopping timber harvesting in carbon protection areas, overall timber harvesting in the project area must be reduced by at least 20% in each year of the project crediting period.

You must prepare and submit a project management plan when applying to register your project.

The plan must include how you will manage the carbon protection areas, and estimates of:

• how much timber would be harvested under the baseline scenario
• baseline levels of direct leakage and private native forest leakage
• how much timber you propose to harvest from the project area during the crediting period.

We expect you to update your management plan to reflect any changes to the project. The management plan is a key project document used to assess eligibility, set harvesting limits during the crediting period, and support ongoing transparency and compliance.

You must publish your management plan on your website.

Projects registered under the method will have a crediting period of 15 years.

Improved native forest management method projects have a 100-year permanence period. Read more about permanence obligations.

Net abatement is calculated by comparing the carbon stored and emissions avoided under the project to a baseline scenario of continued harvesting. This includes accounting for:

• changes in forest carbon stocks
• emissions from harvesting activities
• leakage (where reduced harvesting in the project area leads to increased harvesting elsewhere).

Independent qualified assessors are required to support key inputs for sustainable yield estimates and indirect leakage deductions. We will need to be satisfied that they have the appropriate qualifications and experience to undertake these assessments.

You must publish full details of your net abatement calculations on your website, including the key inputs and assumptions used. This supports transparency and allows others to understand how abatement has been calculated.

You must use the latest version of the Full Carbon Accounting Model (FullCAM) when calculating abatement generated by projects under this method, supported by the Improved Native Forest Management Modelling Guidelines.

You should contact the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water if you need assistance using FullCAM.

You must prepare and submit regular offsets reports covering periods of up to 5 years. Under the method, proponents have up to 48 months after the end of a reporting period to submit their offsets report.

Your offsets reports must include:

• the amount of net abatement generated by the project for the reporting period
• the detailed project map
• the project management plan including any updates
• details of measures taken to promote the effective management of carbon protection areas
• key inputs, assumptions and calculations used to determine abatement, including leakage
• details about project management actions and events modelled in FullCAM
• reports prepared by independent qualified assessors in support of calculation of sustainable yield and indirect leakage.

You may also be required to provide an audit report with your offsets report.

You are required to notify us of certain events that happen to your project, such as:

• timber harvesting that exceeds the baseline level in a financial year
• where harvesting occurs in a carbon protection area and is unrelated to the management of the area
• failure to manage the project in accordance with the management plan for the project.

You should review the method to see all notification requirements for improved native forest management projects.

You can use the Notify the Regulator form in Online Services or contact us to tell us about a notifiable event.

You are required to keep records relating to your project, including:

• information used to reproduce abatement calculations
• maps and imagery of harvested and cleared areas in the project area 
• records about timber harvesting and clearing operations in the project area
• records used to calculate and maintain the aggregate negative abatement account
• evidence of your project monitoring.

We may ask for these records to assist us to assess offsets reports and crediting applications for the project.