Publication - FOI/EIR release

Scottish Forestry - Harvest operations for Clachaig Forest: EIR release

Published: 30 March 2026
Topic: Environment and climate change, Public sector
FOI reference: EIR/202600501682
Date received: 8 January 2026
Date responded: 5 February 2026

Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.

Information requested

1) A copy of the application(s) for felling and replanting of Clachaig Forest (start date circa 2017) by UPM/Tilhill Forestry on behalf of Potanow Forestry.

2) Information on any funding grants given to Tilhill Forestry and/or Potanow Forestry in relation to the site. In particular please provide copies of the application(s) for public funding, including plan showing location, information on the dates and purpose of any funding/grants provided by Scottish Forestry. Please also provide any verification provided by Tilhill/Potanow that demonstrates they were entitled to apply for any grants for the site and/or that they were owners of the land subject to the grant(s).

3) A copy of SEPA's response to (Forestry Commission) Scottish Forestry’s EIA screening (2017) consultation for the forestry road.

4) Copies of correspondence (including any plans/drawings etc) in relation to Water Management (refer to para. 3.4 in attached EIA Scoping Report) between Scottish Forestry, SEPA and Tilhill Forestry.

5) A copy of SEPA’s response to the Screening as referred to in the attached Forestry Commission letter (dated 2/5/2017).

6) Copies of all Scottish Forestry's permissions associated with the forming (including subsequent alterations) of the forestry road for crossing and/or culverting watercourses within the site (other than the information attached to this request).

7) Copies of all correspondence, including site and meeting notes, involving Cameron Maxwell and/or Tom Davies or their representatives and Tilhill Forestry in relation to the forestry works and all related matters including, private water supplies, road construction, drainage and condition of site during and after harvesting.

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.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide some of the information you have requested because an exception under regulation 11(2) of the EIRs (personal information), 10 (5) (g) of the EIRs (protection of the environment) and 10(5)(e) of the EIRs (commercial confidentiality) applies to some of the information you have requested. Please see Annex A for the reason(s) this/these exception(s) apply.

About FOI

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