<div>'Alarming' rise in Queensland tree clearing as 400,000 hectares stripped</div>

Deputy premier brands Australia ‘deforestation hotspot’ after a 45% jump in her state’s reef catchment clearingQueensland underwent a dramatic surge in tree clearing – with the heaviest losses in Great Barrier Reef catchments – in the year leading up to the Palaszczuk government’s thwarted bid to restore protections.Figures released on Thursday showed a 33% rise in clearing to almost 400,000 hectares in 2015-16, meaning Queensland now has two-thirds the annual rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. Related: Queensland to use satellites to ensure native woodlands are not cleared Related: Murdered environment officer’s family says land-clearing law change would diminish his life Continue reading...