What Makes Reforestation Successful?
Key Considerations for Biodiversity and Long-Term Environmental Impact
As demand for climate-positive land use grows, reforestation projects are becoming increasingly common across Australia. Whether driven by regulatory requirements, such as the Plantations and Reafforestation Act in New South Wales, sustainability goals, or carbon market participation, these projects present an opportunity to restore native ecosystems but only if they’re planned and implemented with ecological integrity in mind.
Reforestation should be about more than planting trees. To deliver lasting biodiversity outcomes and measurable environmental value, projects must align with the landscape’s natural character, support local flora and fauna, and ensure long-term forest cover through careful species selection, land suitability assessment, and ongoing maintenance and monitoring.
We spoke with one of Verterra’s environmental and forest scientists, Kristiina Marquardt, to explore what’s really required to design and deliver a successful reforestation effort. Here's what she had to say.
Environmental and Forest Scientist Kristiina Marquardt in the field.
1. Define the Goal: Reforestation vs. Forest Restoration
Planting trees doesn’t always equate to restoring an ecosystem. Where the goal is to focus primarily on timber production, reforestation often takes the shape of monoculture plantations that have no requirement to rely on native species and, therefore, will not support the same biodiversity as the original ecosystem. This should not be confused with forest restoration, which aims to achieve ecological benefits such as promoting biodiversity or recovering certain ecosystem services.
Start by clearly defining your goal:
Is it biodiversity restoration?
Do you want to diversify income through participation in markets such as carbon or biodiversity, or through timber / non-timber forest products?
Are you looking to achieve land rehabilitation, erosion control or the recovery of other critical ecosystem services?
The answers will shape everything from species selection to site design and long-term management.
2. Plant and foster local species
To ensure reforestation delivers real ecological value, it should reflect an over- and understory species composition representative of local remnant forest ecosystems. A good starting point is to look at the Regional Ecosystem Types (RET) of the region. This means planting species that are native to the region and that form part of the same vegetation community. Guidance by RETs is essential for:
Supporting local flora and fauna
Meeting regulatory and biodiversity offset requirements
Ensuring ecological integrity in the long term
3. Ground Truthing is Critical
While remotely sourced ecosystem maps can guide the process, on-ground verification should be non-negotiable. Site visits help:
Confirm which species are naturally present and thriving
Identify vulnerable or high-value species (e.g. habitat trees for koalas)
Understand actual site conditions and the costs and benefits of running a project under the given conditions
Good reforestation projects will identify native species during site visits that are both present and resilient. This helps form the basis of the restoration strategy, as native species that are present and regenerating are more likely to establish and perform well on site.
4. Understand the Land and Soil
Land suitability assessment for reforestation is fundamental. Key considerations include:
Soil type – Sandy soils may be prone to drought, while some clay soils can promote waterlogging. As such, the texture, structure and chemistry of the soil can impact species selection, as well as required amelioration measures.
Elevation, slope and aspect – This influences water flow, erosion, temperature regimes and access - all important considerations in terms of species selection and project planning.
Accessibility – Essential for planting and ongoing management, and a factor strongly influencing cost.
Site coherence – Larger, connected areas are more ecologically resilient compared to small, disjointed patches of land.
Socio-economic context: Who are the stakeholders? Are there any exclusion zones or cultural heritage considerations?
Soil sampling is particularly important, as soil conditions directly impact seedling survival and long-term ecosystem development.
5. Consider Climatic Conditions and Trends
Climate regime—especially rainfall—is a major factor and can influence prioritisation of locations due to higher or lower likelihood of receiving rainfall.
Other climate-linked factors include:
Fire – Fire risk and mitigation measures in the geographical context must be assessed prior to site selection.
Frost risk – This influences both when to plant and what species to plant. In areas with higher frost risk, frost-tolerant species would be preferred.
Changing climate conditions also mean that traditional species mixes may shift over time—another reason to focus on site-specific, adaptive strategies when planning a reforestation project.
6. Select the Right Species for the Site
Species selection should align with:
Local native species composition, informed e.g. by site inspections and RET maps of the area.
Local genetics, where possible. The closer the seed provenance is to the planting site, or at least resembles conditions in the planting site, the better.
Known resilience, ecological and indigenous value (e.g., food or shelter trees) should be considered, as well as future land usage plans.
Current and projected climate conditions e.g. with respect to rainfall.
Keep in mind that it's not just about planting volume—it’s about ecological function. Consider:
Vulnerable or regionally significant species
Functional diversity across the forest strata
The ability of species to support fauna and provide habitat
7. Don’t Underestimate Management and Monitoring
The first 3–5 years post-planting are critical as this is when seedlings are most vulnerable to disturbance. Key risks include:
Seedling mortality due to drought, animal browsing, competition with weeds, or fire – all risks that may be mitigated with appropriate planning and responsive management interventions - watering, weeding, maintenance of fire breaks and browsing control.
Lack of community or landholder engagement – depending on the context of the reforestation project, it is essential to have buy-in from relevant stakeholders. Project abandonment may lead to failed forest establishment, and / or later conversion to a different land use.
Success hinges on having a clear management plan in place—including monitoring protocols and contingency plans for infill planting or intervention.
8. The Ultimate Key to Success is Time Under Limited Disturbance
Where the goal is to pursue ecological restoration, effective reforestation is measured not only by tree survival, but by how closely the regrowth resembles a mature remnant ecosystem. Some typical indicators that are used include:
Canopy height and cover, number of large-diameter trees
Understorey and ground cover development
Biodiversity value as measured by e.g. Bio-condition assessments, and the actual (measurable) recruitment / population increase of native flora and fauna on the project site.
9. Consider the Bigger Picture
Reforestation can serve multiple purposes. Where possible consider the integration of:
Landscape-level planning: promote connectivity between existing forests and emphasise multi-functionality of landscapes (e.g. farm forestry).
Carbon credits to generate income from reforested land, which can be used to manage ongoing maintenance.
Biodiversity outcomes that enhance regional nature restoration goals and resilience
Long-term commitments to ensure intact ecosystems persist, not just exist
Planning a Reforestation Project?
Verterra works with landholders, corporates, and government to deliver nature-based solutions that go beyond planting trees. If you're looking to design a reforestation or offset project that truly restores biodiversity and delivers long-term ecological value, we can help.
Contact us to learn more about how we tailor reforestation strategies to your site, your goals, and the local ecosystem.