Radiological contamination risks of building windfarms: EIR release

Information requested

1. For planning applications such as wind farms, submitted to the Scottish Government, which statutory consultee is responsible for the assessment of underlying geology and the potential for radiological contamination of drinking water, air, run-off water, and waste water from uranium and radon and other heavy metals present in the bedrock which would be blasted, drilled or bored as part of the development?

2. Is radiological/heavy metal contamination and the impacts on human health a matter that is devolved to the Scottish Government, or reserved to the UK Government?

3. Which Ministerial Departments and agencies are responsible?  

4. Has the Energy Consents Unit considered the potential for radiological contamination during this development and if so, who has been approached for advice? 

Response

As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

1. For planning applications, submitted to the Scottish Government, the bodies to be consulted by the Scottish Ministers at application stage are the relevant planning authority, NatureScot, SEPA and HES and any other relevant public bodies with specific environmental responsibilities or local and regional competencies who the Scottish Ministers consider are likely to have an interest.

Statutory consultees are not directly responsible for any particular assessment, but rather, are provided the opportunity to offer a view on the application, relevant to their interests.

2/3. Reserved policy areas in Scotland are outlined in Schedule 5 of the Scotland Act 1998. Schedule 5 lists the matters which are reserved to the UK Parliament and government and therefore fall outside the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament. This can be found at the following link: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/46/schedule/5

Radiation is a reserved matter and there is an UK Department of Health and Social Care expert Committee COMARE in place that provides advice on the health effects of natural and human-made radiation, both ionising and non-ionising to both the UK government and devolved administrations. The Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland and SEPA are all members of the COMARE committee. https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/committee-on-medical-aspects-of-radiation-in-the-environment-comare

Further information on the responsibilities of ministers of both Scottish and UK Governments is available at the following websites:

https://www.gov.scot/about/who-runs-government/cabinet-and-ministers/

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/government-ministers-and-responsibilities 

4. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide the information you have requested because an exception under regulation 10(4)(d) of the EIRs applies to that information.

Regulation 10(4)(d) of the EIRs applies to material which is still in the course of completion. This exception applies because it would be for the decision maker to take any such concerns that may be relevant into account. Such matters would be dealt with in the decision and then detailed in the determinations letter, both of which are still in the course of completion.

This exception is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in information about consideration of the potential for radiological contamination during this development, we cannot pre-empt the final determination decision.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.