Labor's plan to fund Great Koala National Park with carbon credits faces Senate opposition over additionality concerns

The Albanese government's plan to use carbon credits from avoided deforestation to help fund the Great Koala National Park in New South Wales is facing a Senate roadblock. The Coalition and crossbench MPs have joined forces to disallow the Improved Native Forest Management method, arguing it lets states generate credits for forest protection they already promised. Critics say this undermines additionality, a core integrity requirement of carbon offset schemes. Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen approved the method in June, carving out an exemption for state governments that still allow native forest logging. The Australia Institute and environmental groups argue the policy lets fossil fuel companies buy credits from forest protection that was going to happen anyway, effectively greenwashing continued coal and gas expansion. The Coalition's Matt Canavan says the method would lock up productive forest land for 100 years and harm regional timber communities. The dispute highlights ongoing tension between using carbon markets to fund conservation and maintaining market integrity. If the Senate disallows the regulation, the method cannot proceed, leaving the NSW government to find other funding for the park. The outcome will set a precedent for how additionality is applied to state government pledges in Australia's carbon credit system.