Western Australia sometimes feels more than three hours behind the rest of the country.

The tyranny of our distance has always meant it’s been hard to get the attention of the east coast.

For West Australians, this has famously led to a secessionist streak that re-emerged spectacularly during the start of the pandemic, when we were truly cut off.

Even now, on a regular basis, WA becomes severed from the rest of Australia when fire or flood cuts the tenuous road and rail links connecting us across the Nullarbor.

But most of Australia has been asleep at the wheel while WA has taken control of environmental policies, driving the political conversation ahead of overlapping WA and federal elections.

And not in a good direction.

In recent months, it has become clear that federal Labor’s flagship national nature laws reforms have become stuck in limbo.

Last month, the West Australian newspaper – owned by a company with substantial mining and gas interests – ran a front page that labelled the Albanese government “an enemy of the state”. Just hours later, nature positive........

© The Guardian