Freedom of information

All public authorities that are subject to Freedom of Information are also subject to the Environmental Information Regulations (EIRs).

EIRs also apply to a wider range of organisations and bodies that have responsibility for the environment. EIRs therefore include private companies and partnerships with public authorities (water, energy, waste and transport).

What is environmental information?

Environmental information covers information on the state of the environment, such as:

• air, water, soil, land, flora and fauna (including human beings), diversity, genetically modified organisms
• information on emissions and discharges, noise, energy, radiation, waste and other such substances
• measures and activities such as policies, legislation, plans, and agreements
• reports, cost benefit and economic analyses
• the state of human health and safety, contamination of the food chain
• cultural sites and built structures (as they may be affected by environmental factors)

You can submit a request under the Environmental Information Regulations in the same way you would for a Freedom of Information request. You can also make verbal requests under EIR .

Once you have submitted a request, we must respond as soon as possible. We have 20 working days to complete your request although we can extend this to 40 working days for complex cases.

There are some important differences between requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act and Environmental Information Regulations. For further information on this please see the EIR pages on the Information Commissioner's website.