Success for Yued Rangers in first seedling season
There’s a new ranger team lacing up its boots on Yued Boodja in Western Australia’s Mid West, and its members have hit the ground planting.
In an impressive debut, the Yued Rangers planted nearly 60,000 seedlings in just over eight days for Woodside’s Native Reforestation Project. The team was formed by Yued Aboriginal Corporation’s Ranger Coordinator, Christine Drayton, who says she could not be prouder.
“It was great to see the rangers working together,” Christine shares. “This was their first attempt at planting seedlings at this scale, and they did an exceptional job.”
The planting scope, awarded through Woodside’s managing contractor, Nativ Carbon, took place on our Karakin property, located north of Perth in the Shire of Gingin. You wouldn’t know it was the Rangers' first planting season though – they finished almost two days ahead of schedule.
Nativ Carbon Director, David Lullfitz, says it is inspiring to see the Yued Rangers achieving such strong results. “Opportunities like this, with support from Nativ Carbon, are helping Indigenous enterprises thrive in the carbon sector,” David highlights.
The job followed a Woodside grant, awarded through our fund designed to support Indigenous enterprises entering the carbon industry. Carbon Origination Adviser, Ben Malseed, recently joined Nativ Carbon to hand over planting equipment purchased with the grant.
“The grants play an important role in equipping teams like the Yued Rangers as they build their experience and skills in this space,” Ben reflects.
“Thanks to Nativ Carbon’s support, the recipients get access to the appropriate tools they need to complete the work safely and effectively from day one.”
The Yued Rangers’ efforts contribute to the more than 10 million plants installed since Woodside’s Native Reforestation Project commenced in 2020. In that time, 14 properties have been purchased across Western Australia and seven in New South Wales, totalling close to 45,000 hectares. The project aims to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units, or ACCUs, by revegetating the land across our portfolio with biodiverse seedlings.
This planting season, Nativ Carbon’s contractors, including the Yued Rangers, have been busy in Western Australia doing just that. Led by Woodside Carbon Geospatial Specialist, Melinda Reynolds, our recent planting activities in the Wheatbelt saw more than two million seedlings installed across eight properties.
Melinda says that’s no small feat.
“Every farm has its own challenges – different soil types, weed load and seasonal conditions during planting,” Melinda points out. “Despite the variability of conditions, the teams did a fantastic job across more than 3,000 hectares this year.”
While in the region, Melinda took the opportunity to look over the fence at some of our existing planting efforts, and she’s impressed with the results. “It’s incredible to see just how much our seedlings from previous years have grown on our properties,” she says. “That’s a testament to the success of our planning and execution.”
 |  |
If you ask Biodiversity Scientist, Kelly Rensing, she’ll tell you the good news doesn’t stop there for both our carbon origination activities and work with the Yued Rangers. While our Native Reforestation Project focuses on generating ACCUs, it also aims to incorporate biodiversity. “Native seeds are collected each year in preparation for the following year’s planting activities,” Kelly explains. “Last year, seeds were collected from 64 species, which were used to cultivate the seedlings we planted this year.”
Why is that important?
Kelly says many of those seed species were selected for their ecological value to threatened and endangered native fauna. “This includes banksias and hakeas, which are key food sources for threatened Carnaby’s cockatoos,” Kelly notes.
She has teamed up with a local Carnaby’s cockatoo expert to install artificial hollows in trees at one of our properties. With large portions of the Carnaby’s natural breeding habitat cleared across Western Australia, the hollows aim to provide a nesting space and support population growth.
Kelly’s also been busy working with an ecologist to deploy wildlife monitoring cameras and capture data on both native and feral visitors to the properties. Looking ahead, she says there are plans for the Yued Rangers to participate in the monitoring activities and further biodiversity programs on Woodside’s properties. “It would be a meaningful step for the rangers to continue building their experience and create further opportunities to work on Country.”
