European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations, 2007

JurisdictionIreland
Year2007
CitationIR SI 133/2007

ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS

1. Citation and commencement.

2. Transitional provision and revocation.

3. Interpretation.

4. Scope.

5. General duties of public authority.

6. Request for environmental information.

7. Action on request.

8. Grounds that, subject to article 10, mandate a refusal.

9. Discretionary grounds for refusal of information.

10. Incidental provisions relating to refusal of information.

11. Internal review of refusal.

12. Appeal to Commissioner for Environmental Information.

13. Appeal to High Court on point of law.

14. Guidelines.

15. Fees.

SCHEDULE Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 on public access to environmental information and repealing Council Directive 90/313/EEC

S.I. No. 133 of 2007

EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (ACCESS TO INFORMATION ON THE ENVIRONMENT) REGULATIONS 2007

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 3rd April, 2007.

I, DICK ROCHE, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972 (No. 27 of 1972) and for the purpose of giving effect to Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 1 , hereby make the following regulations:

Citation and commencement

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007.

(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on 1 May 2007.

Transitional provision and revocation

2. (1) A request for information made under the Regulations of 1998 and not determined by the public authority concerned prior to the commencement of these Regulations shall continue to be dealt with and determined by that authority under the Regulations of 1998.

(2) The Regulations of 1998 are revoked.

(3) In this article “Regulations of 1998” means the European Communities Act 1972 (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 125 of 1998 ).

Interpretation

3. (1) In these Regulations—

“applicant” means any natural or legal person requesting environmental information pursuant to these Regulations;

“Commissioner” means the holder of the office of Commissioner for Environmental Information established under article 12;

“Directive” means Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 1 , which, for convenience of reference, is set out in the Schedule;

“environmental information” means any information in written, visual, aural, electronic or any other material form on—

(a) the state of the elements of the environment, such as air and atmosphere, water, soil, land, landscape and natural sites including wetlands, coastal and marine areas, biological diversity and its components, including genetically modified organisms and the interaction among these elements,

(b) factors, such as substances, energy, noise, radiation or waste, including radioactive waste, emissions, discharges and other releases into the environment, affecting or likely to affect the elements of the environment,

(c) measures (including administrative measures), such as policies, legislation, plans, programmes, environmental agreements, and activities affecting or likely to affect the elements and factors referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) as well as measures or activities designed to protect those elements,

(d) reports on the implementation of environmental legislation,

(e) cost-benefit and other economic analyses and assumptions used within the framework of the measures and activities referred to in paragraph (c), and

(f) the state of human health and safety, including the contamination of the food chain, where relevant, conditions of human life, cultural sites and built structures inasmuch as they are, or may be, affected by the state of the elements of the environment referred to in paragraph (a) or, through those elements, by any of the matters referred to in paragraphs (b) and (c);

“environmental information held by a public authority” means environmental information in the possession of a public authority that has been produced or received by that authority;

“environmental information held for a public authority” means environmental information that is physically held by a natural or legal person on behalf of that authority;

“Minister” means the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government;

“public authority” means, subject to sub-article (2)—

(a) government or other public administration, including public advisory bodies, at national, regional or local level,

(b) any natural or legal person performing public administrative functions under national law, including specific duties, activities or services in relation to the environment, and

(c) any natural or legal person having public responsibilities or functions, or providing public services, relating to the environment under the control of a body or person falling within paragraph (a) or (b),

and includes—

(i) a Minister of the Government,

(ii) the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland,

(iii) a local authority for the purposes of the Local Government Act 2001 (No. 37 of 2001),

(iv) a harbour authority within the meaning of the Harbours Act 1946 (No. 9 of 1946),

(v) the Health Service Executive established under the Health Act 2004 (No. 42 of 2004),

(vi) a board or other body (but not including a company under the Companies Acts) established by or under statute,

(vii) a company under the Companies Acts, in which all the shares are held—

(I) by or on behalf of a Minister of the Government,

(II) by directors appointed by a Minister of the Government,

(III) by a board or other body within the meaning of paragraph (vi), or

(IV) by a company to which subparagraph (I) or (II) applies, having public administrative functions and responsibilities, and possessing environmental information;

“request” means a request for environmental information pursuant to article 6.

(2) Notwithstanding anything in sub-article (1), “public authority” does not include any body when acting in a judicial or legislative capacity.

(3) A word or expression that is used in these Regulations and is also used in the Directive has the same meaning in these Regulations that it has in the Directive.

Scope

4. (1) These Regulations apply to environmental information other than, subject to sub-article (2), information that, under any statutory provision apart from these Regulations, is required to be made available to the public, whether for inspection or otherwise.

(2) Notwithstanding—

(a) section 38 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (No. 30 of 2000) and any regulations made thereunder,

(b) sections 10 and 31 of the Air Pollution Act 1987 (No. 6 of 1987) and any regulations made thereunder, and

(c) sections 6 and 89 of the Environmental Protection Agency Act 1992 (No. 7 of 1992)(as amended by the Protection of the Environment Act 2003 (No. 27 of 2003)) and any regulations made thereunder,

environmental information held by, or on behalf of, a public authority shall be made available in accordance with these Regulations.

General duties of public authority

5. A public authority shall—

(a) inform the public of their rights under these Regulations and the Directive and provide information and guidance on the exercise of those rights, and

(b) make all reasonable efforts to maintain environmental information held by or for it in a form or manner that is readily reproducible and accessible by information technology or by other electronic means.

Request for environmental information

6. (1) A request for environmental information shall—

(a) be made in writing or electronic form,

(b) state that the request is made under these Regulations,

(c) state the name, address and any other relevant contact details of the applicant,

(d) state, in terms that are as specific as possible, the environmental information that is the subject of the request, and

(e) if the applicant desires access to environmental information in a particular form or manner, specify the form or manner of access desired.

(2) An applicant shall not be required to state his or her interest in making the request.

Action on request

7. (1) A public authority shall, notwithstanding any other statutory provision and subject only to these Regulations, make available to the applicant any environmental information, the subject of the request, held by, or for, the public authority.

(2) (a) A public authority shall make a decision on a request and, where appropriate, make the information available to the applicant as soon as possible and, at the latest, but subject to paragraph (b) and sub-article (10), not later than one month from the date on which such request is received by the public authority concerned.

(b) Where a public authority is unable, because of the volume or complexity of the environmental information requested, to make a decision within one month from the date on which such request is received, it shall, as soon as possible and at the latest, before the expiry of that month—

(i) give notice in writing to the applicant of the reasons why it is not possible to do so, and

(ii) specify the date, not later than 2 months from the date on which the request was received, by which the response shall be made,

and make a decision on the request and, where appropriate, make the information available to the applicant by the specified date.

(3) (a) Where a request has been made to a public authority for access to environmental information in a particular form or manner, access shall be given in that form or manner unless—

(i) the information is already available to the public in another form or manner that is easily accessible, or

(ii) access in another form or manner would be...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT