The Liberals and the resources industry continue to pile pressure on Western Australia's environmental protection watchdog as it considers a new position on emissions-intensive projects.
The state's Environmental Protection Authority was forced to rescind a guideline in March recommending carbon neutrality for big projects, sparking an uproar from the oil and gas industry.
The sector warned $50 billion worth of new LNG projects were in jeopardy and also complained the EPA hadn't done enough consultation, which it will do for 12 weeks starting June 10.
At an oil and gas conference in Brisbane on Thursday, Resources Minister Matt Canavan said WA's EPA had "seemingly decided that it can change the temperature of the globe from its offices in Perth".
"The short-sighted and counter-productive proposals from the WA EPA should be immediately knocked on the head by the WA government," Senator Canavan said.
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He said it bemused him why WA would seek to hold up 16 major oil and gas projects at various stages of planning in the state when it badly needed jobs.
"This is especially the case when the WA EPA guideline would be ineffective at tackling climate change at best, and more likely counter productive."
Minerals Council of Australia chief executive Tania Constable said the WA EPA was "freelancing on the future of the Paris Agreement".
"This is another example of unnecessary policy encroachment and duplication that is too common and we would hope the WA government will not allow actions that threatens jobs and investment in one of Australia's resources states," she said.
Woodside, Energy Minister Angus Taylor and WA's Liberal opposition all took aim at the agency earlier this week.
