People walk in front of Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia, on Oct. 11, 2021.(Photo: Xinhua)

An Australian court on Tuesday ruled that the country's environment minister does not have a duty to protect children from the harms of climate change, overturning a landmark ruling.

A group of high-school students had argued Australia's environment minister, Sussan Ley, must weigh the harm that climate change will inflict on children when approving new fossil fuel projects.

In July 2020, a judge agreed with the students, finding the minister must "avoid causing personal injury or death" to under 18s due to "emissions of carbon dioxide into the Earth's atmosphere." But the environment minister soon appealed that watershed ruling.

On Tuesday, Australia's federal court sided with the minister, in part because of the "tiny increase in risk" from the coal mine at the center of the case - Whitehaven's Vickery coal mine.

Anjali Sharma, 17, said the ruling had left her and her fellow students "devastated."

"Two years ago, Australia was on fire; today, it's underwater. Burning coal makes bushfires and floods more catastrophic and more deadly. Something needs to change," she said.

Izzy Raj-Seppings, 15, said there was "still much to celebrate" in the judgement.

"The court accepted that young people will bear the brunt of the impacts of the climate crisis," she said, arguing that is an important step in climate litigation.

The students' lawyers will consider whether to appeal the case to Australia's highest court.

The Australian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

AFP