AIE Request

I made a decision on your request on 15/02/2023. Following examination of material held by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, I have been unable to locate any records relevant to your request. I therefore refuse your request

With regards to specific questions raised by you:

1. Any data audits conducted by or for DECC to identify environmental datasets under the Open Data Directive?
   No audits to identify environmental datasets under the Open Data Directive have been
   conducted by or within DECC. At present DECC does not “hold” any environmental
   datasets of its own and relies instead on environmental datasets produced mainly by other
   state bodies and agencies as well as other sources.
2. Directive 2019/1024/EU introduces the concept of high value datasets (HVDs). Please list any HVDs identified by DECC
   As DECC Data Officer I have not been notified of any list of environmental HVDs identified
   by DECC.
3. Under Regulation 4 of SI 376/2021 all Departments/Offices and relevant bodies under their aegis are obliged to supply to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform with information as requested from time to time, such as open data progress reports. Provide copies of the DECC progress reports as supplied to PER.
   This is not environmental information as defined by SI 133/2007; “environmental
   information” means any information in written, visual, aural, electronic or any other material
   form on— 1 OJ No. L 41, 14.02.2003, p.26. Notice of the making of this Statutory
   Instrument was published in “Iris Oifigiuil” of 3rd April, 2007. 4 133 the state of the etc

4. All Departments/Offices and relevant bodies under their aegis must assign responsibility to an officer for matters arising under these Regulations in line with the national Open Data Strategy. Please provide contacts for any Open Data officers
   appointed at DECC from 2021 to date

This is not environmental information as defined by SI 133/2007;

5. In line with Regulation 13 of SI 376/2021, the details of any new exclusive arrangements being entered into must be published online at least two months before they come into force. Please provide list of any exclusive arrangements
   agreed to date by DECC
   I’m the officially appointed DECC Data Officer and I have not been notified of any exclusive
   arrangements agreed to date by DECC

6. Any exemptions sought by DECC to the release of open data, and which datasets these exemptions related to.
   No exemptions to the release of open data have been sought by DECC or from anybody
   within DECC.
7. Public Bodies must draft an Open Data Publication Plan. Provide a copy of any DECC draft or completed open data plans to date
   This request is not related to environmental data. Public Bodies are not required to submit a publication plan of environmental information and none has been submitted by DECC to date.
8. All public bodies need to publish details of what data is available for re-use and the licencing conditions that apply (CC BY 4.0 Attribution advised). Please provide a list of (where this differs from data audit list, see above).
   Public bodies have published 3,542 datasets under the Environmental theme on the open
   data portal (https://data.gov.ie/dataset?theme=Environment). This is the only list of
   environmental data available for reuse to which DECC Data Officer and other personnel
   have access.
9. Copy of DECC’s RPSI Policy (RPSI is Reuse of Public Sector Information)
   To date, DECC has not developed an RPSI Policy and consequently does not have an
   RPSI Policy document.

I have also been unable to determine whether any other public authority might possess the
records that you have requested.

AIE P006 2022

1. Under the Open Data Directive which public bodies have sought exemptions to environmental open data, and for which environmental datasets

No exemptions have been sought from the ODU.

2. Under the Open Data Directive which public bodies have conducted data audits to identify environmental datasets under the Directive

The Open Data Unit holds no environmental data audits.

3. Directive 2019/1024/EU introduces the concept of high value datasets (HVDs). Please list the identified environmental HVDs by public authority

The Open Data unit has not been notified of any list of environmental HVDs by public authority.

4. Under Regulation 4 of SI 376/2021 all Departments/Offices and relevant bodies under their aegis are obliged to supply to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform with information as requested from time to time, such as open data progress reports. Provide copies of the progress reports received in 2022

This is not environmental information as defined by SI 133/2007; “environmental information” means any
information in written, visual, aural, electronic or any other material form on— 1 OJ No. L 41, 14.02.2003,
p.26. Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in “Iris Oifigiuil” of 3rd April, 2007. 4
[133] (a) the state of the elements of the environment, such as air and atmosphere, water, soil, land,
landscape and natural sites including wetlands, coastal and marine areas, biological diversity and its
components, including genetically modified organisms and the interaction among these elements, (b)
factors, such as substances, energy, noise, radiation or waste, including radioactive waste, emissions,
discharges and other releases into the environment, affecting or likely to affect the elements of the
environment, (c) measures (including administrative measures), such as policies, legislation, plans,
programmes, environmental agreements, and activities affecting or likely to affect the elements and factors
referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) as well as measures or activities designed to protect those elements,
(d) reports on the implementation of environmental legislation, (e) cost-benefit and other economic
analyses and assumptions used within the framework of the measures and activities referred to in
paragraph (c), and (f) the state of human health and safety, including the contamination of the food chain,
where relevant, conditions of human life, cultural sites and built structures inasmuch as they are, or may be,
affected by the state of the elements of the environment referred to in paragraph (a) or, through those
elements, by any of the matters referred to in paragraphs (b) and (c);2

5. All Departments/Offices and relevant bodies under their aegis must assign responsibility to an officer for matters arising under these Regulations in line with the national Open Data Strategy. Provide copy of list of Open Data officers

This is not environmental information as defined by SI 133/2007; “environmental information” means any
information in written, visual, aural, electronic or any other material form on— 1 OJ No. L 41, 14.02.2003,
p.26. Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in “Iris Oifigiuil” of 3rd April, 2007. 4
[133] (a) the state of the elements of the environment, such as air and atmosphere, water, soil, land,
landscape and natural sites including wetlands, coastal and marine areas, biological diversity and its
components, including genetically modified organisms and the interaction among these elements, (b)
factors, such as substances, energy, noise, radiation or waste, including radioactive waste, emissions,
discharges and other releases into the environment, affecting or likely to affect the elements of the
environment, (c) measures (including administrative measures), such as policies, legislation, plans,
programmes, environmental agreements, and activities affecting or likely to affect the elements and factors
referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) as well as measures or activities designed to protect those elements,
(d) reports on the implementation of environmental legislation, (e) cost-benefit and other economic
analyses and assumptions used within the framework of the measures and activities referred to in
paragraph (c), and (f) the state of human health and safety, including the contamination of the food chain,
where relevant, conditions of human life, cultural sites and built structures inasmuch as they are, or may be,
affected by the state of the elements of the environment referred to in paragraph (a) or, through those
elements, by any of the matters referred to in paragraphs (b) and (c);

6. In line with the Regulation 13 of SI 376/2021, the details of any new exclusive arrangements being entered into must be published online at least two months before they come into force. Provide list of exclusive arrangements agreed to date in relation to environmental data

The Open Data Unit has not been notified of any exclusive arrangements.

7. Public Bodies must draft an Open Data Publication Plan. Provide list of completed plans to date in relation to environmental data

Public Bodies are not required to submit a publication plan of environmental information to the Open Data Unit and none has been submitted.

8. All public bodies need to publish details of what data is available for re-use and the licencing conditions that apply (CC BY 4.0 Attribution advised). Provide list of same for environmental data (where this differs from data audit list, see above)

Public bodies have published 3,542 datasets under the Environmental theme on the open data portal (https://data.gov.ie/dataset?theme=Environment). This is the only list of environmental data available for reuse to which the Open Data Unit has access.

In addition to this, I would like to emphasise that the Open Data Unit has no power to compel public bodies to release their data, nor does it have visibility of their data holdings, other than what is published on the open data portal.

Under the AIE Regs to request the following:

1. Under the Open Data Directive which public bodies have sought exemptions to environmental open data, and for which environmental datasets 

2. Under the Open Data Directive which public bodies have conducted data audits to identify environmental datasets under the Directive 

3. Directive 2019/1024/EU introduces the concept of high value datasets (HVDs).  Please list the identified environmental HVDs by public authority 

4. Under Regulation 4 of SI 376/2021 all Departments/Offices and relevant bodies under their aegis are obliged to supply to the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform with information as requested from time to time, such as open data progress reports. Provide copies of progress reports for the following entities managing environmental data

– DAFM

– Housing/NPWS

– EPA

– OSi

– Coillte

– Bord na Mona

– IFI

5. All Departments/Offices and relevant bodies under their aegis must assign responsibility to an officer for matters arising under these Regulations in line with the national Open Data Strategy. Provide copy of list of Open Data officers

6. In line with the Regulation 13 of SI 376/2021, the details of any new exclusive arrangements being entered into must be published online at least two months before they come into force. Provide list of exclusive arrangements agreed to date in relation to environmental data

7. Public Bodies must draft an Open Data Publication Plan. Provide list of completed plans to date in relation to environmental data

8. All public bodies need to publish details of what data is available for re-use and the licencing conditions that apply (CC BY 4.0 Attribution advised). Provide list of same for environmental data (where this differs from data audit list, see above)

AIE Request, 4/7/22