Project Charter

Status:: Draft
Source file:: 01 Scoping/01-project-charter.md
Created:: 2026-06-09
Last updated:: 2026-08-05
Sensitivity review:: Completed
Purpose:: The project will determine whether industrial hemp represents a commercially viable and environmentally beneficial opportunity for agricultural producers, regional communities and New England Landcare Network member organisations across the member-organisation region.

Project Purpose

The project is not intended to promote or oppose industrial hemp. It is intended to test claims, identify trade-offs and support defensible decisions.

Scope Transition

Phase 1 originally used Granite Borders Landcare and the Granite Borders region as a deliberately limited starting frame. This charter has now been re-scoped before the next secondary research update so the primary geography is the combined New England Landcare Network member-organisation footprint.

Core Decision Question

Does industrial hemp represent a commercially viable, environmentally defensible and strategically relevant opportunity for agricultural producers, regional communities and New England Landcare Network member organisations across the member-organisation region?

Objectives

Define whether there is genuine, verifiable market demand for industrial hemp products.
Determine whether industrial hemp can be produced profitably within realistic Australian supply chains.
Assess whether industrial hemp is agronomically suitable across the New England Landcare Network member-organisation region.
Assess whether industrial hemp provides meaningful environmental benefits compared with existing and realistic alternative land uses.
Determine what role, if any, New England Landcare Network member organisations should play.

Assessment Perspectives

Perspective	Primary decision question	Required treatment
Commercial Viability for Agricultural Producers	Would a reasonable producer in the member-organisation region choose to grow industrial hemp?	Separate farm-gate economics, agronomic risk, opportunity cost and adoption barriers from broader industry claims.
Commercial Viability for Supply Chains	Can the industrial hemp industry operate sustainably beyond the farm gate?	Test processing capacity, buyer demand, quality specifications, logistics, market depth and pricing evidence.
Strategic Value for NELN Member Organisations	Should New England Landcare Network member organisations invest time, resources or reputation in industrial hemp-related activities?	Assess fit with Landcare objectives, member value, governance, reputational risk, extension role and partnership options.
Environmental Outcomes	Would increased industrial hemp production create net positive environmental outcomes compared with realistic alternatives?	Compare impacts against existing regional land uses and plausible substitutes rather than assessing hemp in isolation.

Scope

The project will assess industrial hemp in relation to:

Grain, fibre, hurd, biomass and other legally relevant industrial hemp product categories.
Agricultural production, processing, logistics, marketing and end markets.
Environmental outcomes including soil health, soil carbon, biodiversity, water use, water quality, chemical use, landscape resilience and greenhouse gas emissions.
The New England Landcare Network member-organisation region, comprising Granite Borders Landcare, Southern New England Landcare, Glenrac and Gwymac areas.
Supporting comparison geographies where required, including broader New England, Northern Tablelands, Granite Belt, Darling Downs, Border Rivers Catchment, New South Wales, Queensland and Australia.

Geographic Definition

For this project, the primary study area is the combined member-organisation footprint:

Member organisation	Primary geography for this project
Granite Borders Landcare	Tenterfield Shire, NSW, and the former Stanthorpe Shire area in Queensland.
Southern New England Landcare	Armidale Regional Council.
Glenrac	Glen Innes Severn Council.
Gwymac	Inverell Shire Council.

Evidence should be tagged by member area where possible. Broader New England, Northern Tablelands, NSW, Queensland and Australian evidence may be used where member-area data is unavailable, but it must be labelled by geography and assessed for transferability.

Out of Scope

Advocacy for or against industrial hemp.
Medical cannabis, recreational cannabis or illegal cannabis markets.
Final business case conclusions during Phase 1 or this scoping refresh.
Substantial new secondary research during this scoping refresh.
Primary research interviews during this scoping refresh.
Investment advice to individual producers.

Success Criteria

The project will succeed if a reasonable reviewer can understand what questions were asked, what evidence was used, which perspective each finding applies to, what evidence was weak or unavailable, what trade-offs remain and whether any role for New England Landcare Network member organisations is proportionate to the evidence.

Constraints

The member-organisation region combines multiple local government and organisational geographies, so geographic fit must be assessed source by source.
Some market data may be commercial, unpublished or difficult to verify.
Industrial hemp product categories differ materially and must not be treated as one market.
Environmental benefits may depend on production system, rotation, irrigation, soil type, climate and alternative land use.
Supply chain viability may depend on minimum scale, consistent quality and processing access.
Cross-border regulation remains relevant because the project includes both NSW and Queensland areas.

Phase Deliverables

Project charter.
Question hierarchy.
Assumptions register.
Data requirements register.
Stakeholder map.
Primary research plan.
Secondary research plan.
Source priority register.
Analysis framework.
Business case structure.
Phase 1 gaps and risks review.
Phase 1 summary report.

Key Risks

Risk	Affected perspectives	Mitigation
Treating hemp as a single undifferentiated industry	Producer, Supply Chain, Environment	Separate evidence by product category and production system.
Accepting industry or advocacy claims without verification	All	Require traceable evidence and classify source strength.
Over-relying on non-local evidence	Producer, Environment	Record geography and transferability assumptions for every source.
Confusing buyer interest with bankable demand	Producer, Supply Chain	Prioritise evidence of prices, volumes, specifications and purchase commitments.
Assessing environmental benefits without a comparator	Environment, NELN / Member Organisations	Require comparison with realistic regional alternatives.
Reputational exposure for member organisations	NELN / Member Organisations	Separate education, facilitation, demonstration, partnership, advocacy, monitor-only and no-role options.

Decision Gates

Gate	Purpose	Minimum requirement
Scoping refresh to next Phase 2 update	Confirm the re-scoped foundation is ready for secondary research updates	Questions, data needs, source priorities and risk controls are updated to the NELN member-organisation footprint.
Phase 2 to Phase 3	Confirm evidence gaps requiring primary research	Evidence register identifies unresolved claims and interview priorities.
Phase 3 to Phase 4	Confirm primary evidence is sufficient for analysis	Interview notes and evidence updates are complete enough to test assumptions.
Phase 4 to Phase 5	Confirm analysis is ready for business case drafting	Perspective-specific findings, trade-offs and confidence levels are documented.