Australia cleared 7.7m hectares of threatened species habitat since introduction of environment act

More than 90% of the land cleared was not referred to the federal government for assessment

More than 7.7m hectares of habitat have been cleared since the introduction of Australia's national environment act, according to new research that finds 93% of land cleared was not referred to the federal government for assessment.

The study, led by researchers from the University of Queensland and three environment organisations - the Australian Conservation Foundation, WWF Australia and the Wilderness Society - warns that Australia's high extinction rate will increase "without a fundamental change" in how environment laws are enforced.