Tree planting information: EIR release
Information request and response under the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004.
Information requested
1. Could you supply how much hectares of trees have been planted in Scotland in each of the last five years?
2. Could you supply any documentation held by your organisation about the commitment to increase tree-planting to 18,000 hectares, including correspondence sent and received (including internal), briefings, minutes/notes from meetings, policy analysis, from the last six months?
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. Could you supply how much hectares of trees have been planted in Scotland in each of the last five years?
Official data and statistics on tree planting is published by Forest Research and is available here: https://www.forestresearch.gov.uk/tools-and-resources/statistics/time-series/
The data includes yearly data and long time series and breakdown across the UK, public and private sectors, and broadleaves and conifers.
2. Could you supply any documentation held by your organisation about the commitment to increase tree-planting to 18,000 hectares, including correspondence sent and received (including internal), briefings, minutes/notes from meetings, policy analysis, from the last six months?
I enclose and also have provided links to some of the information you requested. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance we are unable to provide most of the information you have requested because exceptions under regulations 10(4)(d) (material in the course of completion), 10(4)(e) (internal communications) and 11(2) (Personal data relating to third party) of the EIRs applies to that information. The reasons why those exceptions apply are explained in the Annex to this letter.
Woodland creation, as set out in your request, has been discussed at a number of the agency’s groups within the time frame noted, and the minutes of these meetings are published online and are available here:
Attached to this response are copies of relevant correspondence and parliamentary questions.
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.
Contact
Please quote the FOI reference
Central Correspondence Unit
Email: contactus@gov.scot
Phone: 0300 244 4000
The Scottish Government
St Andrew's House
Regent Road
Edinburgh
EH1 3DG
There is a problem
Thanks for your feedback