Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has slammed the door on a controversial Clive Palmer-owned central Queensland coal mine project, potentially setting a powerful precedent for her to block almost two dozen other proposed fossil fuel projects.

The decision marks the first time that a minister has used Australia’s 22-year-old Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act to reject a coal mine, raising expectations Ms Plibersek will use her powers to halt other projects that threaten biodiversity and habitat loss.