ARCHIVE: Quick guide to environmental information regulations

The Environmental Information Regulations (EIRs) 2004 are based on Directive 2003/4/EEC. They give the public access rights to environmental information held by a public authority in response to requests. The Regulations came into force on 1 January 2005 along with the Freedom of Information Act and cover any information that is considered to be 'environmental information' within the terms of the Regulations.

The Regulations promote the release of as much environmental information as possible to enable increased public participation in environmental decision making.

This page links to a variety of guidance ranging from short summaries to full detailed guidance.

Charging for environmental information under the EIRs (PDF 100 KB)
Step-by-step guide to handling EIR requests flowchart (PDF 20 KB)
Handling requests flowchart / decision tree (PDF 20 KB)
The boundaries between EIR and FOI (PDF 123 KB)
Guidance on using the ICO model publication scheme to disseminate environmental information (PDF 120 KB)
Hints for practitioners handling FOI and EIR requests (2008) (PDF 1.3 MB) on ICO website

Page last modified: 28 July 2010
Page published: 21 September 2005