Access to Information on the Environment

The European Communities Access to Information on the Environment Regulations 2007-2018 gives you legal rights to seek access to information on the environment from Sligo County Council. Under these Regulations, information relating to the environment held by, or for, a public authority must be made available on request, subject to certain exceptions. These regulations also oblige public authorities to be proactive in disseminating environmental information to the public.

The regulations cover information in written, visual, oral, electronic or any other material form. There are six categories of information available as follows:

1. The state of the elements of the environment. For example, air, water, soil, land, landscape, biological diversity.
2. Factors affecting, or likely to affect, the elements of the environment. For example, energy, noise, radiation, waste and other releases into the environment.
3. Measures designed to protect the elements of the environment, e.g., policies, legislation, plans, programmes, environmental agreements
4. Reports on the implementation of environmental legislation.
5. Analyses and assumptions used within the framework of measures designed to protect elements of the environment.
6. The state of human health and safety, the food chain, cultural sites and built structures in as much as they are or may be affected by the elements of the environment.

Every request for information on the environment needs to fall under one or more of these categories.

 

How to make a request under Access to Information on the Environment

Access to Information on the Environment requests must be submitted in writing by post to AIE Officer, Climate and Environment Department, Sligo County Council, County Hall, Riverside, Sligo or by email to aie_requests@sligococo.ie

Your request must clearly state that the records that are being requested are under the Access to Information on the Environment Regulations 2007-2018. Please make sure to be as specific as possible about what information you are requesting and which of the six categories above it relates to. You must also provide your name and contact details. 

 

AIE Fees and Charges

The regulations allow a public authority to charge a reasonable fee for the cost of supplying the environmental information; Article 15 is the relevant provision.  As per Circular AIE/2/2017, a public authority may charge for information supplied under the regulations. This charge may include not only postal and photocopying costs, but also to costs attributable to the time spent by staff on answering an individual request for information, which includes the time spent on searching for the information and putting it in the form required.

 

List of Fees

€20 per hour for costs attributable to the time spent by staff on answering an individual request for information, time spent on searching for the information and putting it in the form required.

Photocopying records (excl. Planning files and Fire Certs): 4 cent per page (Black & White)

Other charges not included above:

Planning fees:

• File retrieval
  • Under 5 files: €50
  • 5 or more files: €100
• Copy of Planning permission: €9.25
• Photocopying
  • Black and white A4 - 50c per page
  • Colour A4 - €1 per page
  • Black and white A3 - €1 per page
  • Colour A3 - €2 per page
  • Black and white A2 €6 per page
  • Black and white A1 €8 per page
  • Black and white AO €10 per page

Fire Service Fees:

• Fire Report €100
• Fire Cert – Black and white A4 - 50c per page

 

Limited Means 

If you are advised of a charge and it is beyond your means, it is open to you to request that we reduce or waive the fee.  If you wish to pursue this option, we will require some evidence that your means are limited, for example, evidence that you hold a current medical card or are in receipt of a social welfare benefit. 

 

How will my request be handled?

Sligo County Council has a duty to reply to you within one month of receiving your application.

We will advise you of the decision and provide the requested information if your request has been approved. If the request is for a large amount of information or is very complex, this response will advise you of the date that you can expect the information; which will not be more than two months from your original request.

Can my request be refused?

Yes, there are a number or reasons why Sligo County Council might refuse your request.  If your request is too broad, we will help you to reword your request in more specific terms, under the correct category. We may also refuse the request if it is:

• Manifestly unreasonable, having regard to the volume or range of information sought,
• Contains material that has not yet been completed, or unfinished documents or data, or
• Concerns internal communications of public authorities, taking into consideration the public interest served by the disclosure. 
  
  

The Regulations also set out a number of mandatory grounds for refusal that Sligo  County Council must follow.  This includes when releasing the information would negatively affect:

• The confidentiality of personal information relating to a person who has not consented to the disclosure of the information,
• The interests of any person who voluntarily supplied the information requested unless that person has consented to the release of that information,
• The protection of the environment to which that information relates, or
• The confidentiality of the proceedings of public authorities. 
  
  

The Council also has the option to refuse if disclosure of information would negatively affect:

• International relations, national defence, or public security,
• The course of justice,
• Commercial or industrial confidentiality, or
• Intellectual property rights. 
  
  

Right to Appeal

If you are dissatisfied with a decision on your request, you may appeal the decision internally. You have one month from receiving the decision, to request an internal review. An application to review a decision should be addressed to the stated senior employee, as outlined in the acknowledgement letter you will receive.  You will receive a reply with the details of their decision within one month of your request for a review.  There is no charge for this internal review process.

If you are unhappy with the decision of the internal appeals officer, you may then appeal to the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information. These appeals should be addressed directly to:

Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information
6 Earlsfort Terrace,
Dublin 2, D02 W773

Phone: 01 639 5689
Email: info@ocei.ie
Web: ocei.ie

You will also find more information about the regulations and guidelines on the following websites: