"Today's announcement of a Carbon Farming Initiative to be set up by the Gillard Labor Government gives real grunt to Australia's response to climate change" says Mike Berwick, Chair of Terrain NRM, the regional Natural Resources body for the Wet Tropics.

For the last two years, Terrain has been working on behalf of Australia's 56 regions, and with the conservation, industry, Local government and farming sectors to develop a clear path forward for farmers and landholders to play their part in reducing Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. "Paying landholders to secure a better landscape and farming practices seems a logical way to go. We pushed the same message to all parties, and we are delighted that Labor has taken up the proposition. This is a win-win solution for farming and conservation".

Labor's Carbon Farming Initiative sets up a structured and efficient market-based approach to enable landholders to offer their carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas abatement services to the nation and the world. CSIRO estimates of the potential for sequestration and abatement in the Australian landscape shows the potential scale of the opportunity is enormous.

"The collaboration envisaged between Landcare, landholders and regional bodies will ensure the effective design and delivery of the program", says Dr Allan Dale, Terrain CEO. "Regional NRM bodies look forward to working constructively with Government to make the program deliver efficient outcomes. Our experiences with such collaborative approaches in the Reef Rescue program have shown that the Government and can work together with regional communities to get the best results for the landscape.

For further information please contact:

Dr Allan Dale 0418 736 422 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).

Mike Berwick 0419 022 629 ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )

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