In a heated, late-night phone conference with state and territory environment ministers, Federal Environment Minister Greg Hunt has delivered a vigorous defence of Commonwealth climate change policies.

Mr Hunt called for regular meetings with his state and territory counterparts to tackle issues like climate change, during the urgent phone conference.

"The meeting was quite heated, obviously he was defensive of his emissions reduction fund policy," Queensland Environment Minister Steven Miles told the ABC this morning.

Most state and territory ministers took part in the hook-up last night, held shortly before Mr Hunt left for New York to sign the Paris climate change agreement.

It was set up after Dr Miles called for an urgent meeting of environment ministers to be held in Cairns, to discuss the threat of climate change and the severe coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef.

A national meeting in Cairns was ruled out, but ministers agreed to hold regular phone conferences.

"All of the states and territories took the opportunity to raise their concerns about how their state was suffering from climate change," Dr Miles said.

"Other states like Tasmania were quick to point out that while the Great Barrier Reef might be suffering, so were they from many other effects of climate change.

"But ultimately we came to a positive outcome."

He said he believed there was an acceptance from Mr Hunt that the states needed the Commonwealth "to step up and work with us to address climate change".

Dr Miles said there would be at least two meetings of states and territories and the Commonwealth before the federal election planned for July 2.

Earlier yesterday, Mr Hunt criticised the way Dr Miles went about calling for the national meeting, saying he received a letter after Dr Miles's address to State Parliament.

"It is surprising you have still not bothered to pick up the phone," Mr Hunt wrote in response.

"These are not the actions of a serious government taking serious action on a serious issue. A late letter after the fact is simply an embarrassment."