Last week, three senior Australian economists criticized the Abbott government's policies on climate change. Economist Ross Garnaut and former Treasury secretary Ken Henry attacked the government’s “direct action” policy, whereby companies and farmers would be paid to reduce emissions, arguing that it would cost close to $4 or $5 billion—rather than the $1.5 billion the government predicted. Former Reserve Bank governor and current chairman of the Climate Change Authority Bernie Fraser followed suit on Wednesday with an address to the National Press Club.

The government of New South Wales has cleared the way for the state’s forests to be used to generate electricity. Burning native vegetation to produce power had previously been banned, but new regulations would allow trees destined for pulp and paper production—as well as invasive native species and offcuts of sawlogs—to be burned in power stations.

Last Friday, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority gave the green light to North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation to deposit as much as 3,000,000 cubic meters of dredging waste into the Great Barrier Reef. The dumping permit would allow for major expansion of the port of Abbot Point, potentially bringing in up to $28 billion in coal projects. While the Authority placed 47 environmental conditions on the project—including long-term water quality monitoring and measures to reduce the impact on biodiversity—environmentalists fear the damage expansion of the port could cause.

According to a new report by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Australia releases more greenhouse emissions to achieve its economic growth than almost any other major economy. The report ranks economies on their ability to grow without escalating carbon emissions, and found that Australia—with its reliance on coal-fired energy—is second only to Estonia in terms of carbon emissions per unit of GDP.

Despite conservationists' concerns, last Friday Australia’s environment minister, Greg Hunt, approved mining billionaire Clive Palmer’s China First coalmine. The mine, planned for Queensland’s Galilee Basin, will have the capacity to produce 40 million tons of coal per year, triggering an estimated 85.6 million tons of CO2 when the coal is burned. Approval for the project came with 49 conditions.

According to one marine scientist, mining constitutes a greater threat to the health of the Great Barrier Reef than agriculture. Last Tuesday, federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt authorized dredging and dumping associated with four coal terminals on the Great Barrier Reef coast, as well as the building of a liquid natural gas refinery and pipeline.

A new 10-year Forest Management Plan for Western Australia will double the area previously allowed for logging. The plan, which will be in effect from 2014 to 2023, will open up more than 2,000 square kilometers of old jarrah and karri forest in the southwest for logging, while protecting an extra 4,000 hectares in Whicher National Park and over 334,000 hectares of old-growth forest. According to Environment Minister Albert Jacob, the plan is based on “scientific knowledge” and will protect biodiversity, but conservationists feel that it will further endanger threatened wildlife.

Australia’s Climate Change Authority—a group founded in 2011 that conducts independent research and analysis on climate change—has deemed the country’s target of a five percent cut in carbon emissions to be inadequate. According to the Authority, a 15 to 25 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2020 would put Australia “more in line with what other countries are doing,” and a report by the Authority even recommended a target reduction of 35-50 percent by 2030.

As the United Nations body responsible for world heritage sites expressed concern that Australia did not inform it of plans to create one of the world's largest coalports adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, environment minister Mark Butler deferred the decision, citing new reports that may influence whether the project is approved. Butler was due to decide by last Friday whether to allow the dredging of 3 million cubic meters of seabed to double Abbot Point port's coal capacity, but the minister pushed the deadline back to November 8, after the election.

Australia accused Japan of carrying out commercial whaling under the pretext of scientific research in violation of an international ban during the first day of court hearings between the two countries. Australia, which seeks to put an end to the yearly slaughter of nearly 1,000 whales in the Southern Ocean, has asked the International Court of Justice to withdraw the Japanese fleet's whale hunt permits.