Environmental
Information Regulations
The updated
Environmental Information Regulations came into force on 1 January 2005.
They implement European Directive 2003/4/EC on public access to environmental
information.
Members of the
public have the right to access environmental information held by public
authorities.
Any individual
can request environmental information. The request does not have to
be in writing; it could be by letter, email, telephone or in person.
The Environmental
Information Regulations apply to most public authorities that are also
covered by the Freedom of Information Act. Additionally, they also apply
to any body or person carrying out a function of public administration;
and anybody or person under the control of a public authority who has
responsibility in relation to the environment (including some private
companies and public private partnerships, for example companies involved
in energy, water, waste and transport).
Enviromental information leaflet
Definition
of environmental information includes information on
-
the
state of the elements of the environment, such as air, water, soil,
land, fauna (including human beings);
-
emissions
and discharges, noise, energy, radiation, waste and other such substances;
-
measures
and activities such as policies, plans, and agreements affecting
or likely to affect the state of the elements of the environment;
-
reports,
cost-benefit and economic analyses;
-
the
state of human health and safety, contamination of the food chain;
-
cultural
sites and built structures (to the extent they may be affected by
the state of the elements of the environment).
Exceptions
Regulation 12
provides public authorities with some grounds for refusing to disclose
environmental information (exceptions). Exceptions
leaflet. These include denying disclosure because:
-
the
information is not held by the authority, or the authority cannot
ascertain the nature of the request;
-
the
request is 'manifestly unreasonable';
-
the
information is 'unfinished or in the course of being completed'.
-
Certain
exceptions require proof of the harm that would be caused by release
of the information.
Information
can, for example, be withheld if release would adversely affect:
-
defence,
international relations, national security, and public safety;
-
the course
of justice, or the confidentiality of proceedings;
-
'intellectual
property rights';
-
'interests
of the supplier of the information', where supply was voluntary;
-
commercial
confidentiality;
-
the protection
of the environment.
Public
Authorities
Public authorities
must make their environmental information available more and more through
electronic means. Public authorities must also organise their environmental
information with a view to its systematic dissemination to the public.
There are minimum criteria on what public authorities are expected to
disseminate proactively. These are detailed in Article 7 (2) of the
European Directive (2003/4/EC).
Public authorities that are also subject to the Freedom of Information
Act may wish to use their publication scheme as a way of complying in
part with their responsibilities to disseminate their environmental
information proactively.
Public authorities
must publish a scale of charges (if any), so that applicants can predict
the likely cost of their request.
The public authority
must respond to the applicant within 20 working days by providing the
information or issuing a refusal notice. The time limit can only be
extended (to 40 working days) if the information requested is complex
and voluminous.
Public authorities
must provide advice and assistance to applicants when necessary.
A reasonable
charge may be made for environmental information. No charge may be made
for environmental information held in registers or lists or for viewing
the information at the public authority's premises. There is no 'appropriate
limit' to the cost of providing environmental information.
If the public
authority refuses access to information, it must explain which exception
applies and why releasing the information is not in the public interest.
It must also inform the applicant of their right to complain.
The Environmental
Regulations create a strong presumption in favour of openness.
Unless exceptions
apply, the public authority must aim to meet the applicant's requirements
regarding the form or format of the information, if stated.
If an applicant
is dissatisfied with the way the public authority dealt with their request,
they may put their comments to the public authority and it must then
reconsider its decision.
If the applicant
is still dissatisfied after the reconsideration procedure, he or she
can complain to the ICO which will investigate the case independently
and act on its conclusions.
The applicant
can appeal the ICO's decision to the Information Tribunal.
The ICO is tasked
with enforcing the Environmental Information Regulations. The enforcement
provisions of the Environmental Information Regulations are taken directly
from the Freedom of Information Act 2000. The ICO has no power to intervene
in any residual, ongoing disputes begun under the 1992 Regulations.
compliance
leaflet
Proactive
dissemination leaflet
FAQ
leaflet
Requesting
enviromental information leaflet
