All documents pertaining to East Gippsland Shire Council Poplar Removal Program - Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) Summer Camp, Bairnsdale, Victoria (EPBC 2009/5017)
Dear Department of the Environment and Energy,
I would like to request a copy of all reports, approval requests, letters, documents and management plans pertaining to East Gippsland Shire Council Poplar Removal Program - Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) Summer Camp, Bairnsdale, Victoria (EPBC 2009/5017) submitted to the Minister for Department of Environment and Energy, or any previous name of that department, from January 2009 to July 2018
Yours faithfully,
Charlie Schroeder
Dear Charlie
Freedom of Information Request no. 180716
The Department of the Environment and Energy (the Department) acknowledges
receipt of your request under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI
Act) which seeks:
a copy of all reports, approval requests, letters, documents and
management plans pertaining to East Gippsland Shire Council Poplar Removal
Program - Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) Summer Camp,
Bairnsdale, Victoria (EPBC 2009/5017) submitted to the Minister for
Department of Environment and Energy, or any previous name of that
department, from January 2009 to July 2018.
The Department is required to process valid requests within 30 days after
the day a request was received. This 30 day processing period may be
extended under certain circumstances, for example, where the Department
decides it reasonable to consult with third parties. If the processing
period is extended, you will be informed of the extension and the reasons
for it.
The statutory deadline for providing a decision on this request is
currently 27 August 2018.
The Department makes two assumptions that affect the scope of the request.
These are set out below.
It is the usual practice of the Department:
· not to disclose the personal information of junior officers or
the personal contact details of senior officers of the State or Federal
governments (including those of the Department). The names of senior
officers will generally be released. Your request will be processed on the
assumption that you do not intend to capture these details within its
scope.
· not to release duplicates of any document captured within the
scope of the request. Further, where two documents fall within the scope
one differs from the other only with respect to minor editorial changes
(such as spelling or grammar corrections), only the later version of the
document will be treated as within scope. Your request will be processed
on the assumption that you do not intend to capture duplicates or
documents that the Department considers duplicates (as per the above
explanation) within the scope of your request.
Please inform us if you do not agree to the request being processed by the
Department on the above assumptions.
Please note that information released under the FOI Act may later be
published online on our disclosure log.
We will contact you using the email you provided. Please advise if you
would prefer us to use an alternative means of contact.
If you have any questions, please contact the FOI team on (02) 6274 2098.
Regards
Felicity Slater
FOI Contact Officer | General Counsel Branch
Department of the Environment and Energy
a: GPO Box 787 CANBERRA ACT 2600
t: 02 6274 2098
e: [1][email address]
Dear FOI Contact Officer, Felicity Slater,
I agree to the conditions stated in your reply, received today.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Schroeder
Good morning Mr Schroeder,
Please find attached a notice of practical refusal issued in respect of
your FOI request 180716.
Kind regards,
FOI Contact Officer
Dear FOI Contact Officer,
As requested, revision of Freedom of Information Request NO.180716: request all reports and documentation referencing East Gippsland Shire Council Poplar Removal Program - Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) Summer Camp, Bairnsdale, Victoria (EPBC 2009/5017) submitted to, and documentation from the office of the Minister of Department of the Environment and Energy by/to East Gippsland Shire Council and Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning from Wednesday 01 January 2014 up to Tuesday 31 July 2018.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Schroeder
Good afternoon Mr Schroeder,
The practical refusal reason issued in respect of your FOI request 180716 has been removed. The Department continues to process your request from 10 August 2018.
The statutory deadline for your request is 30 August 2018. This deadline may be extended if the Department decides to consult or issue charges for the processing of the request.
Kind regards,
FOI Contact Officer
Good afternoon Mr Schroeder,
Please see the attached decision letter.
Kind regards,
FOI Contact Officer
General Counsel Branch
Department of the Environment and Energy
a: GPO Box 787 CANBERRA ACT 2600
t: (02) 6274 2098
e: [1][email address]
References
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1. mailto:[email address]
Dear FOI Contact Officer,
In a previous letter [.pdf] document you have stated:
[quote]
Your request for documents is very broad in scope. As identified above, it appears to capture the majority of documents submitted to the Minister in connection with the East Gippsland Shire Council Poplar Removal Program - Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) Summer Camp, Bairnsdale, Victoria EPBC approval number 2009/5017 over the last nine and a half years. Preliminary searches have identified in excess of 1,000 pages of documents falling within the scope of your FOI request. The request will also require the Department to retrieve and review a number of years of archived paper files, and create copies of any relevant documents identified in those files.
[end quote]
Then in the latest you state:
[quote]
I have decided to refuse your request under section 24A(1) of the FOI Act. I am satisfied that all reasonable steps have been taken to find documents that fall within the scope of your request, and that they do not exist.
[end quote]
It would seem that my request was couched in the an incorrect way to get even one of the “1,000 pages of documents falling within the scope of your FOI request”. So knowing that I have asked the wrong questions. I will make a new FOI request and endeavour to do better.
Thank you.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Schroeder
Charlie Schroeder left an annotation ()
These documents might have been filed under a different name by the Department of Environment and Energy and that could confuse the issue.
I am a bit bewildered, especially if there are so many pages pertaining to this request, and yet none can be found?