The Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) came into force on 1 January 2005 and apply to environmental information held by public authorities.

The Six Main Areas

EIR requests fall under six main areas:

• The state of the elements of the environment, such as air, water, soil, land and fauna (including people).
• Emissions and discharges (gases and fluids), noise, energy, radiation, waste and other such substances.
• Measures and activities such as policies, plans, and agreements affecting or likely to affect the state of the elements of the environment.
• Reports, cost-benefit and economic analyses.
• The state of human health and safety and contamination of the food chain.
• Cultural sites and built structures (as they may be affected by environmental factors).

Making an EIR request

EIR requests can be made in the same way as Freedom of Information requests, although there are some differences:

• EIR requests do not have to be specifically made in writing.
• Requests are required to be answered within 20 days but this can be extended to 40 days for complex requests.
• You may be able to access information without making a request or incurring a charge. Please find resources below to assist you with self-service:
• Search planning applications
• View the contaminated land register
• View the historical landfill sites

Property Searches

There is a charge for environmental information requests where the request is a specific property search. The charges for property searches are:

• £66 for up to 2 hours of work
• £131 for between 2 and 4 hours of work

 Property search requests should be directed to foi@ipswich.gov.uk .

 If a charge applies to your request we will inform you of the amount and will not proceed with the search until you have agreed to the fee.

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