FREEDOM OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ON THE ENVIRONMENT REGULATIONS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 549.39

FREEDOM OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ON

THE ENVIRONMENT REGULATIONS

17th May, 2005

LEGAL NOTICE 116 of 2005, as amended by Act XVI of 2008 and Legal

Notice 298 of 2012.

(1) The title of these regulations is the Freedom of Access

to Information on the Environment Regulations.

(2)

The purpose of these regulations is

(a) to guarantee the right of access to environmental

information held by or for public authorities and to set

out the basic terms and conditions of, and practical

arrangements for, its exercise;

(b) to ensure that, as a matter of course, environmental

information is progressively made available and

disseminated to the public in order to achieve the

widest

possible

systematic

availability

and

dissemination to the public of environmental

information; and

(c) to transpose Directive 2003/4/EC of the European

Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2003 on

public access to environmental information.

For the purpose of these regulations and unless the context

otherwise requires

"applicant" means any natural or legal person requesting

environmental information;

"the competent authority" means the Environment and Resources

Authority and such other body or person as the Minister may by

order in the Gazette appoint and different bodies or persons may be

designated as a competent authority for different provisions and

different purposes of these regulations;

"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 referred to in paragraph (a);

FREEDOM OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION

ON 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);

"Information and Data Protection Commissioner" means the

official appointed in terms of article 11 of the Data Protection Act;

"information held by a public authority" means environmental

information in possession of such public authority which has been

produced or received by that authority;

"information held for a public authority" means environmental

information which is physically held by a natural or legal person on

behalf of a public authority;

"the Minister" means the Minister responsible for the

environment;

"the public" means one or more natural or legal persons, and, in

accordance with national legislation or practice, their associations,

organisations or groups;

"public authority" means

(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 paragraphs (a) or

(b)

Provided that this definition shall not include bodies or

institutions when acting in a judicial or legislative capacity.

(1) Any applicant may, without having to state an interest,

request the competent authority to provide him with any

environmental information held by or for the competent authority

or any other public authority.

(2) A record of all such requests shall be kept by the competent

authority.

(1) The competent authority shall, if it has in hand the

requested environmental information, as soon as possible or, at the

latest, within thirty days from receipt of the request, provide such

environmental information to the applicant.

(2) If the volume and the complexity of the information is such

that the period referred to above cannot be complied with, the

period shall be extended by a further thirty days, and the competent

authority shall notify the applicant of such an extension and the

reason thereof within the period set out in subregulation (1)

Provided that if the request is formulated in too general a

manner, the competent authority shall, as soon as possible and

within the period set out in subregulation (1), ask the applicant to

specify the request, and provide the applicant with assistance, if

need be.

If the competent authority does not have in hand the requested

environmental information, the applicant shall be informed

expeditiously and the competent authority shall immediately forward

such a request to the public authorities holding such information,

including information held for such a public authority, and shall, in

accordance with the provisions of regulation 4, provide such

environmental information to the applicant.

(1) Where an applicant requests the competent authority to

make environmental information available in a specific form or

format (including in the form of copies), the competent authority

shall make it so available unless

(a) it is already publicly available in another form or

format, in particular under regulation 9, which is

easily accessible by applicants; or

(b) it is reasonable for the public authority to make it

available in another form or format, in which case

reasons shall be given for making it available in that

form or format.

(2) For the purposes of this regulation, public authorities shall

make all reasonable efforts to maintain environmental information

held by or for them in forms or formats that are readily

reproducible and accessible by computer telecommunications or by

other electronic means.

(3) The reasons for a refusal to make information available, in

full or in part, in the form or format requested shall be provided to

the applicant within the time limit referred to in regulation 4(1).

(1) The competent authority may, on its own behalf or on

behalf of another public authority, refuse to provide the requested

FREEDOM OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION

ON THE ENVIRONMENT

environmental information if

(a) the request is manifestly unreasonable;

(b) without prejudice to the provisions of regulation 4(3),

the request is formulated in too general a manner;

(c) the request concerns material in the course of

completion or unfinished documents or data, provided

that in this case, the competent authority shall state the

name of the authority preparing the material and the

estimated time needed for completion;

(d) the request concerns internal communications, taking

into account the public interest served by disclosure.

(2) The competent authority may furthermore, on its own

behalf or on behalf of another public authority, refuse to provide

the requested environmental information if disclosure of the

information would adversely affect

(a) the confidentiality of the proceedings of public

authorities, where such confidentiality is provided for

by law;

(b) international relations, public security or national

defence;

(c) the course of justice, the ability of any person to

receive a fair trial or the ability of a public authority to

conduct an enquiry of a criminal or disciplinary

nature;

(d) the confidentiality of commercial or industrial

information where such confidentiality is provided for

by national or Community law to protect a legitimate

economic interest, including the public interest in

maintaining statistical confidentiality and tax secrecy;

(e) intellectual property rights;

(f)

the confidentiality of personal data and, or files

relating to a natural person where that person has not

consented to the disclosure of the information to the

public, where such confidentiality is provided for by

national or Community law;

(g) the interests or protection of any person who supplied

the information requested on a voluntary basis without

being under, or capable of being put under, a legal

obligation to do so, unless that person has consented to

the release of the information concerned;

(h) the protection of the environment to which such

information relates, such as the location of rare

species.

(3) The grounds for refusal mentioned in subregulations (1)

and (2) shall be interpreted in a restrictive way, taking into account

for the particular case the public interest served by disclosure. In

every particular case, the public interest served by disclosure shall

b e w e i g h e d a g a i n s t t h e i n t e r e s t s e r v e d b y t h e r e f u s a l . Th e

competent authority may not, by virtue of subregulation (2)(a), (d),

(f), (g) and (h), provide for a request to be refused where the

request relates to information on emissions into the environment.

(4) Environmental information held by or for public authorities

which has been requested by an applicant shall be made available

in part where it is possible to separate out any information falling

within the scope of subregulation (1)(c) and (d) or subregulation

(2) from the rest of the information requested.

(5) A refusal to make available all or part of the information

requested shall be notified to the applicant in writing or

electronically, if the request was in writing or if the applicant so

requests, within the time limits referred to in regulation 4. The

notification shall state the reasons for the refusal and include

information on the review procedure.

(1) Access to any public registers or lists and examination

in situ of the information requested shall be free of charge.

(2) The competent authority may make a charge for supplying

any environmental information, but such charge shall not exceed a

reasonable amount.

(3) Where charges are made, the competent authority shall

publish and make available to applicants a schedule of such charges

as well as information on the circumstances in which a charge may

be levied or waived.

(1) The competent authority shall keep and maintain a

public register with a reference of all the environmental

information held by or for it or held by or for other public

authorities.

(2) Any public authority shall immediately notify the

competent authority with all the environmental information held by

or for it, and such public authority shall, in accordance with

instructions given to it by the competent authority, deposit a copy

of such environmental information with the competent authority.

(1) The competent authority shall take the necessary

measures to ensure that environmental information is actively and

systematically disseminated to the public, in particular by means of

computer communication and, or electronic technology, where

available.

(2) The information to be made available and disseminated

shall be updated as appropriate and shall include at least

(a) texts of international treaties, conventions or

agreements, and of Community, national, regional or

local legislation, on the environment or relating to it;

(b) policies, plans and programmes relating to the

environment;

(c) progress reports on the implementation of the items

referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) when prepared or

held in electronic form by public authorities;

(d) the reports on the state of the environment;

(e) data or summaries of data derived from the monitoring

of activities affecting, or likely to affect, the

environment;

(f)

authorisations with a significant impact on the

environment and environmental agreements or a

reference to the place where such information can be

requested or found in accordance with the provisions

of these regulations;

(g) environmental impact studies and risk assessments

concerning 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

or a reference to the place where the information can

be requested or found in accordance with the

provisions of these regulations.

(3) The competent authority shall take the necessary measures

to ensure that, in the event of an imminent threat to human health or

the environment, whether caused by human activities or due to

natural causes, all information held by or for public authorities

which could enable the public likely to be affected to take measures

to prevent or mitigate harm arising from the threat is disseminated,

immediately and without delay.

(4) The provisions of regulation 7 shall apply mutatis mutandis

in relation to the duties imposed by this regulation.

The competent authority may make regulations to provide

f o r a n y m a t t e r a ff e c t i n g t h e a c c e s s t o i n f o r m a t i o n o n t h e

environment as provided for in these regulations in order to give

fuller effect to the provisions of these regulations, and in particular,

but without prejudice to the generality of the aforesaid, may by

such regulations require any other public authority to comply with

(a) data and public register delivery methodologies; and

(b) data formats, data structures, delivery times and any

other requirement or requirements incidental thereto.

*

In cases where the applicant decides to have recourse to the

Environment and Planning Review Tribunal on matters relating to

requests for environmental information, having due regard to the

need for expeditiousness, the Tribunal shall hold its first hearing

within six working days from receipt of the appeal. In any such

appeal, the provisions of article 41(4) of the Environment and

Development Planning Act shall apply with regard to requests for

environmental information.

*this regulation was originally added, by L.N. 298 of 2012, as regulation 12; however,

by the time it came into force, two new regulations, 12 and 13, had already been added

by Act XVI of 2008; consequently the regulation has been re-numbered as regulation

11A.

(1) Any person who requests the competent authority to

provide him with environmental information in accordance with

regulation 3, and who is dissatisfied with the response, may apply

to the Information and Data Protection Commissioner for a

decision whether, in any specified respect, his request has been

dealt with in accordance with the requirements of these regulations

and any additional regulations made in accordance with regulation

11. (2) Part IV of the Freedom of Information Act other than

article 26, as well as articles 39, 40 and 43 of the same Act, shall

apply mutatis mutandis to requests for information under this

article, save that references to a code of practice in Part IV of the

Freedom of Information Act shall be construed as referring to any

code of practice on the disclosure of information that may be issued

by the competent authority through regulations in accordance with

regulation 11; but the application of the Freedom of Information

Act in terms of this sub-regulation shall not be dependent on the

issue of such a code.

(3) Where the question emerges as to whether or not

inform atio n requested under regulat ion 3 i s environm ental

information to which these regulations apply, that question shall be

subject to review and decision by the Information and Data

Protection Commissioner and additionally subject to appeal under

articles 39 and 40 of the Freedom of Information Act.

In deciding whether or not particular environmental

information is exempted from disclosure under regulation 7(2)(a),

regard shall be had to article 29(2), (3) and (4) and article 36 of the

Freedom of Information Act; and information to which the

aforementioned paragraph applies shall not be released under these

regulations if it would be considered exempt matter under the

Freedom of Information Act.