Carbon insetting for South Australian winegrape growers – Funded by PIRSA AgTech Growth Fund

Abstract

Sequestering carbon in soils and vegetation, or ‘carbon farming’, is an opportunity for the grape and wine sector to inset emissions within the value chain and assist in reaching the emissions reduction targets outlined in the Emissions Reduction Roadmap. Wine Australia joined with a number of industry and tech partners in a 12-month project funded by the PIRSA AgTech Growth Fund. The project, led by tech company AirborneLogic, put in place the technology, reporting framework and practical tools that vineyard managers and viticulturists can use to manage the measurement and reporting of stored carbon on their properties. It also created and amplified a compelling case study for the first vineyards to be lodged under the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF). Project outcomes were designed to benefit producers across the entire sector, through the direct involvement of independent growers, large multinational growers, boutique premium wineries, global wine brands and multiple wine regions across South Australia.

Summary

Producers across agriculture are facing increasing social, regulatory and business drivers to adopt sustainable practices and reduce GHG emissions. An opportunity exists for wine grape growers to offset their emissions with the carbon they are sequestering on their land, but there is currently no scalable technology to measure it or share that information with the wineries that they supply to. Funded through the PIRSA AgTech Growth Fund, the project brought together AgTech companies AirborneLogic and FarmLab with the South Australian wine industry to deliver:

• a compliant, scalable and globally leading solution for the Australian wine sector to quantify carbon in the soil and natural vegetation of vineyards, by utilising existing ERF soil carbon measurement methodology and using tree measurement (LiDAR) technology, alongside industry recognised carbon modeling (CSIRO LOOC_C and ERF FullCAM) estimation software
• the first vineyard soil carbon project baselined and lodged under the Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) 2021 Soil Carbon Methodology
• digital tools for growers to share both their CO2e emissions data and their CO2e insetting activity with wineries and other members of the production and supply chain through the trusted Sustainable Winegrowing Australia (SWA) platform.

Growers can now measure soil and tree carbon potential, compare this against their emissions profile and understand their journey toward carbon net zero and the practical land management activities needed to achieve this. Furthermore, this project provides a pathway for grape and wine producers to demonstrate their own on-farm insetting of carbon, potentially partially or fully removing the need to purchase carbon offsets from third parties.

The project has created a tangible proof point from which to advocate for an update to certification programs such as Climate Active and the Clean Energy Regulator’s existing soil carbon estimation methodology, to enable increased storage of carbon on agricultural land to inset against emissions.

Outcomes of the project have been communicated to the industry through regional workshops in SA (June and July 2024), through industry partner Wine Australia and an article in the industry magazine Grapegrower and Winemaker. In addition, the ERF intends to develop the work into a case study, delivering a significant milestone for the wine sector in leveraging technology to meet sustainability requirements.