The Environmental Information Regulations 2004, which came into force on the 1st January 2005 and replace the 1992 regulations, enable the public to request wide-ranging information from public authorities on the environment.
The definition of "Environmental Information" is very wide. It includes information in "visual, aural, electronic, or any other material form" and covers information on:
The state of the elements of the environment
Factors released into the environment likely to affect those elements
Public legislation, plans, programmes, agreements and activities affecting elements and factors referred to above
Reports on the implementation of environmental legislation
Relevant economic analysis
The state of human health and safety, including the contamination of the food chain, conditions of human life, cultural sites and built structures as affected by the matters listed above.
In practice this means that any information held in relation to the air and atmosphere, water, soil and land, the landscape generally and natural sites, including wetlands, coastal and marine areas can be requested as well as information relating to biological diversity and its components, including genetically modified organisms.
Matters likely to affect the elements include substances such as chemicals, pharmaceuticals, hormones, antibiotics, oil, particulates gases and liquids. It also includes energy,including thermal, chemical, electrical, kinetic, potential, gravitational, heat, solar energy, sunlight and windpower. It also includes noise, radiation and waste, including household, industrial, agricultural and commercial waste.
A member of the public can also ask for details of measures (including administrative measures) and activities affecting or likely to affect the elements and factors referred to above as well as measures designed to protect those elements.
The sort of information that can be requested is surprisingly wide. It can include levels of chlorine in swimming pools, water and air quality test reports, details of genetically modified crops, oil-conditioning systems, the state of repair of public toilets and details of rural grants and payment schemes and information relating to the town and country planning regime.
Information can be requested in writing or verbally from any public authority. By contrast information requested under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 has to be requested in writing. Public authorities include District Councils, County Councils, The Environment Agency, the Health and Safety Executive and school authorities.The information requested, if held by the public authority, should be provided within 20 working days.The public authority can make a reasonable charge for the information provided but cannot charge for inspecting information held at its office or information accessible on its website. A reasonable charge has been decided in a case to be 10p per sheet of A4 paper.
A public authority can charge at a commercial rate for commercially held information. For example the Ordnance Survey would not be obliged to provide its maps for a nominal charge.
The public body is not entitled to ask the requester of the information why they want it. It can however, withhold information on certain grounds set out in the regulations provided the public interest is served by withholding the information. For example the information might be protected from disclosure under the Data Protection Act, or disclosure might put national security at risk. If the public body is to consider withholding the information it has 40 working days to decide whether to release the information requested or withhold it.
These regulations entitle the public to inspect property information registers containing details of, for example, planning permissions enforcement notices and compulsory purchase orders free of charge but they can charge for copy documentation provided.
A public body has a duty under the regulations to proactively publish helpful environmental information in paper or electronic form wheher or not specific requests for information have been made.
As can be seen these regulations can provide a powerful tool in obtaining information that could prove useful to individuals or businesses. If you would like a no-obligation chat in connection with the Environmental Information Regulations please contact Pritpal Singh-Swarn.
