Coatbridge native forest project, marlborough
Forest Type - Indigenous
Emission Reductions
878 tCO2 annual removals
Start Date - 1994
Project Type - Reforestation
402 hectares
Standard - ETS Permanent Category (PP89)
Coatbridge is a family-owned property of 1,600 hectares located in Marlborough.
The Adams family has farmed it since 1851. The property undertakes a diversity of operations, including forest regeneration, cattle and sheep farming, viticulture, and honey production. The owners have committed large parts of their land to forest regeneration by covenanting it under the former PFSI to protect and promote natural forest recovery. The forest is now registered in the Permanent Category of the ETS.
The incredibly diverse native forest shelters an array of bird species, including the South Island robin, tomtit, NZ pipit, karearea, riroriro, fantail, tui, bellbird, kererū, silvereye, and harrier. It also welcomes swallows, weka, and the occasional kaka.
The forest ecosystem consists of many types of trees, such as red, silver, and black beech, and podocarps like rimu, kahikatea, and matai, alongside kanuka and mānuka.
Beneath the canopy and on the fringes are various broadleaved trees and shrubs, including kamahi, akeake, broadleaf, five-finger, lancewood, mahoe, heketara, putaputaweta, wineberry, kohuhu, karamu, mapou, and akiraho. The native shrub daphne (Pimelea India) and nine (Dracophyllum urvilleanum) are also present in the forest, as well as the Southern rata tree, which is rare in the region.
Income from carbon credit sales supports the ecological development of the area by diversifying the landowner income and valuing the retention of the forests. Carbon income helps with maintaining fire breaks and pest and weed control. This includes annual possum control by trapping and goat control on a regular basis.
