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  • 045 980200
  • Head Office: Áras Chill Dara Devoy Park Naas Co Kildare W91 X77F

Environment

Environment Contacts:

Administration

045 980588

045 980587

Email

environ@kildarecoco.ie

Access to Information on the Environment

AIE logo

Access to Information on the Environment (AIE)

What rights do I have in relation to accessing information on the Environment?

You have the right to obtain certain environmental information from a public authority, including Kildare County Council.

This right to Access to Information on the Environment (AIE) comes from Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament, the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No. 133 of 2007) the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (S.I. No. 662 of 2011) and  the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (S.I. No. 615 of 2014).

How do I request information on the Environment, held by Kildare County Council?

To make a request for information under the Access to Information on the Environment Regulations please do so as follows:

  • Please submit your request in writing by email or by post
    • email: AIE@kildarecoco.ie with AIE Request in the subject title
    • post: AIE Officer, Environment Department, Kildare County Council, Aras Chill Dara, Devoy Park, Naas, County Kildare
  • State in your communication that your application for information is being made under the 'Access to Information on the Environment Regulations 2007-2011'
  • State, as accurately as possible, the nature of the environmental information you wish to request
  • Provide your contact details

The AIE Officer will acknowledge receipt of your request and endeavour to respond to you no later than one month from the date of receiving your application.

If your request for information is complex or a large volume of information is required, we will write to you within one month and inform you of the difficulties processing your request. We will provide you with a new date by which we will respond. This date will be no more than 2 months after we received your original request.

What categories of Environmental Information can I access?

The Regulations/Directive covers information held in written, visual, aural, electronic or any other material form. There are 6 categories of information within this Directive:

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

Is there a Fee for Requesting Information on the Environment?

As provided for in the AIE Regulations, there is no initial fee required when lodging a request for information under AIE to this Department. A public authority may however, charge a reasonable fee for supplying environmental information in accordance with the Regulations as follows:

  • search, retrieval and copying costs that do not exceed €100- free of charge.

 

  • search, retrieval and copying costs between €101 to €500- €20 per hour in respect of the full search and retreival costs, €10.00 per CD and €0.04 per page of photocopying subject to a cap of €500.

 

  • search retrieval and copying fees above €700 - If the requestor does not refine the AIE request to bring costs below €700 and the request is processed by the Council-  the full actual costs of producing the records  at €20 per hour in respect of the full search and retrieval costs plus €10.00 per CD and €0.04 per page of photocopying will apply

  • Details of charges, if any, will be advised in the final decision letter.

    It should be noted that fees in respect of supplying information, may be waived where the cost is estimated at less than 10.00 euro.

Have I a right to appeal should my request for information on the Environment, held by Kildare County Council, be refused?

Right to Appeal

There are reasons when you can be legally refused access to environmental information. However, if a public authority refuses your request for information or has not dealt with your request appropriately, you can seek an internal review by the public authority.

If you require an internal review, you must request it within 1 month of receiving the decision by putting your appeal in writing to: Senior Executive Officer, Environment Department, Kildare County Council, Aras Chill Dara, Devoy Park, Naas, County Kildare.

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the internal review you can appeal to the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information, 18 Lower Lesson Street, Dublin 2 (Tel: 01 639 5689) www.ocei.ie

You must appeal within 1 month of receiving the reviewed decision from the public authority. The CEI may extend the time limit if he/she believes it is reasonable to do so.

 

How do I contact the AIE Officer for Kildare County Council?

Write:             AIE Officer, Environment Department, Kildare County Council, Aras Chill Dara, Devoy Park, Naas, County Kildare.

Phone:            045 980588
Email:            aie@kildarecoco.ie (Please indicate 'AIE Request' in Subject Line).