Speaking in Mackay yesterday, Bligh said she wanted the port’s primary exports to remain as sugar and grain and said it would be “inappropriate” to ship coal through the regional centre.

“There is a proposal to shift coal through the city but we are today – at this early stage – signalling a clear message that we do not want coal through the centre of this city,” Bligh said.

This has incensed lobby group the Queensland Resources Council which said the Bligh government had hijacked normal assessment processes.

QRC chief executive Michael Roche was critical of the government’s decision to block coal through the port before it had reached the stage of an environmental impact assessment.

“The government also has a duty to allow due process to take place and I’m puzzled at the government’s lack of confidence in its own world-class environmental assessment process,” Roche said.

He said the refusal of the coal proposal would place more pressure on other coal export terminals to deliver much needed additional capacity.

Only yesterday the state government and the QRC were boasting cooperation and unity over the signing of a Sustainable Resources Communities Agreement, which would benefit regional Queensland mining communities.

Bligh said coal export expansions would be best through Hay Point, Dalrymple Bay and Abbot Point.

Earlier this year the government announced $A250 million to increase Abbot Point’s coal exporting capacity to 50 million tonnes per annum.

The government’s move against using the Mackay port as a potential coal terminal came after a local backlash against the proposal, according to Mackay MP Tim Mulherin.

“I am delighted with this decision that has been made today – it’s the right thing to do for the environment of our city and for the future of our city,” he said.