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Environmental health
Environmental information
The council aims to comply with the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and Freedom of Information Act. It will therefore make available to the public, in accordance with the legislation and best practice (as promoted by the Information Commissioner), all information it holds relating to the environment.
Information relates to the environment if it relates to any of the following :
- the state of any water or air, the state of any flora or fauna, the state of any soil, or the state of any natural site or other land;
- any activities or measures (including activities giving rise to noise or any other nuisance) which adversely affect anything mentioned above or are likely adversely to affect anything so mentioned; and
- any activities or administrative or other measures (including any environmental management programmes) which are designed to protect anything so mentioned.
Further information on the Environmental Information Regulations can be found at :
- www.sustainable-development.gov.uk/key/environmental/environmental.htm
- website temporarily off-line - but try cutting and pasting the URL into your web browser
See also on our website :
- Adur District Council website
- Environment Agency website
- Public registers
- Other site or property specific information
- Other general information
- Obtaining information
Adur District Council website
There is some environmental information available through the council's website, for example on air quality and contaminated land. More may be included in the future, as resources allow.
Environment Agency website
By logging onto the Environment Agency website with your postcode you can access some local environmental information on :
- Bathing waters
- Discharges to sea
- Groundwater
- Floodplains
- Flood warning areas
- Landfill sites
- Pollution inventory
- River quality
- Integrated Pollution Control Operator and Pollution Risk Appraisal scores
- Waste Operator and Pollution Risk Appraisal scores
- Catchment areas
- Urban Waste Water Treatment Works
Visit the Environment Agency website (www.environment-agency.gov.uk)
Public Registers
Certain Public Registers are available at the Civic Centre :
- Authorised Processes - (Part I, Environmental Protection Act 1990)
- Contaminated Land - (Part IIA, Environmental Protection Act 1990)
- Radioactive Substances - (Radioactive Substances Act 1960)
- Cooling Towers - (Notification of Cooling Towers & Evaporative Condensers Regs 1992)
Other registers may be available at the local office of the Environment Agency.
All the information in public registers can be inspected in person free of charge. If photocopies of information contained in public registers are required, there is usually a photocopying charge.
Other site or property specific information
Sometimes information is sought that is not available on the Council's website nor within public registers, for instance information about a specific site.
As an example, companies undertaking a risk assessment may wish to know what environmental information the Council holds on land within so many metres of a particular address.
For this, where staff will need to trawl through files, a standard charge is made :
- From 1st April 2009 :
- Environmental Information Regulations - search fee : Basic charge : £138.00
- Plus per file or address in excess of 10 : £7.00
- VAT Status : Non-Business
- See also : Access and Charging Arrangements for Property Information
(Note : Prices on this page are subject to an annual review / increase in April each year. These are correct as at April 2009).
Other general information
The Council holds a variety of information, either generated itself or provided by other bodies, which is covered by the provisions of the Environmental Information Regulations. These may be viewed at the Civic Centre, free of charge, but any photocopies required will be charged for. Anyone wishing to obtain photocopies must be aware of potential copyright restrictions on the use of the information.
Examples include :
- Reports of the Southern England Radiation Monitoring Group
- Radioactivity in the Environment 2001 (Environment Agency)
- Annual report of Drinking Water Inspectorate
- Annual report of Southern Water Services Ltd
- State of the Environment 2004 - South East England
Obtaining information
If you need information covered by the Environmental Information Regulations, you need to make a request. The request need not be in writing but it is obviously easier for us to meet your information needs if you set these out in a letter or by e-mail.
Your request should, in the first instance, be directed to Environmental Support.
