AAP reported that federal environment minister Mr Tony Burke has accused the Queensland government of telling an "outrageous lie" over the approval of mining projects.

Mr Burke on Thursday gave the green light to GVK-Hancock Coal's multi billion dollar Alpha coal mine in central Queensland.

The minister had previously said he had "no confidence" in the state government's ability to conduct environmental assessments of such projects.

After approving the Alpha coal project, Mr Burke published an open letter to the Queensland government, accusing Premier Campbell Newman of wanting to "trash the Great Barrier Reef".

Deputy Queensland Premier Jeff Seeney said Mr Burke was preventing other major projects from going ahead.

But Mr Burke said there was nothing ready for approval. He told that "It's a good line, but he made it up.”

"To have a situation where he (Mr Newman) claims to the people of Queensland that there are projects ready for me to sign and I'm sitting on them ... it's just an outrageous lie."

Mr Seeney said Rio Tinto's South of Embley bauxite mine expansion on Cape York was not at the approval stage because Mr Burke had created an unnecessary barrier to the project.

Source - AAP

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