AIE Access to Information on the Environment

How to make an AIE request

If you wish to request access to environmental information held by Health and Safety Authority, simply complete the above form and email it to foi@hsa.ie

Please state in your email / letter that your request is made under the AIE Regulations 2007-2018.

To help streamline the AIE application process and to ensure a timely response to all requests, we have developed a designated AIE form.

When can I expect a response to my request?

HSA will notify you of the decision on your request within one month of our receiving it.

On receipt of an AIE request, HSA will issue you with an acknowledgement letter outlining the date the request was received and the latest date by which a decision will be issued.

Will it cost me anything?

There is no fee to make a request under AIE Regulations. However, the regulations do allow a public authority to charge a reasonable fee for the cost of supplying the environmental information.

HSA has set the following charges:

  • search, retrieval and copying of records: €20 per hour
  • photocopy: €0.04 per sheet
  • CD Rom: €10
  • radiograph: €6

Details of any charges that apply will be advised in the final decision letter. Please note that the fee may be waived where the cost is estimated at less than €100.

We may also disregard charges if the record contains only personal information and if, having regard to the means of the requester, it would not be reasonable to apply one.

What if I am unhappy with a decision?

You can request an internal review of the decision if your request for environmental information has been either wholly or partially refused, or if you believe it has not been dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the AIE Regulations. You should make this request for an internal review within one month of receiving the final decision.

Requests for internal reviews should be submitted to: foi@hsa.ie

If you are unhappy with the outcome of the internal review, you may ask the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Information (OCEI) to review the matter. You should request an appeal to the OCEI within one month of receiving the decision of the internal review

AIE Legislation

The European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007 (S.I. 133 of 2007), gives legal rights to those seeking access to information on the environment from public authorities.

These Regulations came into effect on 1 May 2007, repealing the previous legislation, the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 1998. S.I. 662 of 2011, S.I. 615 of 2014 and S.I. 309 of 2018 revised these regulations further.

The amalgamation of these four pieces of legislation should be read together as one, and may be referred to as the European Communities (Access to Information on the Environment) Regulations 2007 to 2018.

An unofficial consolidation of the Regulations is available here.

Information relating to the environment held by, or for, a public authority must be made available on request to any person subject to certain exceptions.

The Regulations provide a definition of environmental information and outline the manner in which requests for information should be provided to public authorities. The Regulations also provide for a formal appeals procedure in the event that a person is unhappy with a decision on their request.

European Directive

The AIE Regulations give effect in Ireland to Directive 2003/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on Public Access to Environmental Information (the AIE Directive). This Directive repealed Council Directive 90/313/EEC, which was the previous EU instrument providing for access to environmental information.

The EU adopted the AIE Directive to give effect to the Access to Information pillar of the 1998 UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters (the Aarhus Convention).