Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has faced angry landholders and environmentalists in the Darling Downs, where hundreds of protesters have called for miners to be blocked from their communities.
Ms Bligh was also accused of using the state's disasters for political gain during a forum at Toowoomba, where the destructive flash floods began in January before devastating nearby towns in the Lockyer Valley west of Brisbane.
Outside the forum, several hundred protesters, some dressed as native mammals and many holding placards, called for Queensland's food bowl to be protected against coalmining which they say would destroy the region.
Many of the protesters were part of a civil disobedience campaign by landowners and environmentalists to lock coal and coal seam gas companies out of their properties and prevent them from exploring the land.
Inside, Ms Bligh took one angry question after another and at times strained to be heard over the jeering crowd.
Residents told the premier their lives were on hold while mining companies explored areas they might or might not be granted the right to mine.
The crowd erupted in cheers when one man demanded Ms Bligh not let mining companies "march unhindered through the Darling Downs".
Ms Bligh told the forum she understood their frustration. But companies had legislative rights to be considered for mining approval, she said.
They also had to pass strict environmental and social requirements, she said.
"It would be important to recognise that here in Queensland we do actually have extraordinary requirements and not everybody passes them," Ms Bligh said.
"Queensland doesn't just give a tick to anyone who walks in the door.
"In fact, there's been a number knocked back and only about one per cent, I think, of mining exploration permits ever get mining approval."
The crowd also cheered when another man took the microphone and accused the premier of using the natural disasters for political gain.
"I congratulate you for using the disaster for political advantage by riding on the backs of the real heroes in this disaster," he said.
"Enjoy your seat because you might not have it for long."
In responding, Ms Bligh said: "I'll take that as a political comment."
Ms Bligh earlier told reporters Queensland had a "remarkable opportunity" to start a whole new industry in the export of liquefied natural gas.
But she acknowledged new industries had "teething problems" and it was up to the government to protect the environment.
It's the second angry community cabinet Ms Bligh has faced in three weeks since new polling showed the natural disasters had given her popularity a huge bounce from the dismal levels of last year.
At the Gold Coast a fortnight ago she she faced an audience angry about the Queensland government's water policies, which were causing their bills to skyrocket.
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