The creation of the panel was a concession by the Government to independents Rob Oakeshott and Tony Windsor to win the support needed to pass the minerals resources rent tax.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh, a vocal supporter of the coal seam gas industry, cautioned the Federal Government against adding red tape to mining approval processes.

"I think it's important to ensure whatever new arrangements are put in place federally are not a duplication," she told News Limited.

"I don't want to see a situation where companies go through all the Queensland processes and then have to go through it all over again in federal processes."

AgForce policy director Drew Wagner welcomed the announcement.

He said it was important to investigate coal seam gas mining's potential impacts on the environment and prime agricultural land.

"AgForce has never argued the CSG industry shouldn't exist, but that we need to be sure it won't permanently harm food-producing resources like land and water," he said.

"Unfortunately the Queensland government has never produced the science to convince us and many rural communities of that."