Noise nuisance at Retreat Farm

​​​​Request 813117936

Under the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011, I am requesting information held by the Infrastructure and Environment Department regarding the regulation of statutory noise nuisance at Retreat Farm, in relation to Northern Leaf. 

Please provide the following information regarding Abatement Notices WK/020220100 (29 April 2022) and WK/0202231382 (6 April 2023): 

1. Copies of all noise monitoring reports, decibel measurements and formal assessments conducted between January 2022 and April 2022, prior to the issuance of the initial Abatement Notice with a 22-day compliance period, regarding noise from generators powering chillers. 

2. Any recorded information, including briefing notes or internal correspondence, regarding the timeline between August/September 2022, when the chillers transitioned from generator power to a new substation and the issuance of the second Abatement Notice in April 2023. 

3. Copies of all meeting minutes, briefing notes, or internal correspondence where the use of the Minister’s powers under Article 7(4) of the Statutory Nuisances (Jersey) Law 1999 (to abate the nuisance and do whatever may be necessary in execution of the notice) was discussed, considered, or dismissed in favour of mediation. 

4. Any departmental guidance, policy documents, or internal memos used to determine when "mediation" is recommended as an alternative to the exercise of statutory powers under Article 7(4), particularly in instances of ongoing or repeated non-compliance with an Abatement Notice.

Response

1

Copies of all noise monitoring reports, decibel measurements and formal assessments conducted between January 2022 and April 2022, prior to the issuance of the initial Abatement Notice are attached.

Personal information within the documents has been redacted in accordance with Article 25 (Personal Information) of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011.

2

Under the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 (“FOI Law”), a Scheduled Public Authority (SPA) may refuse to supply information if it estimates that the cost of doing so would exceed the amount prescribed by the relevant Regulations.

In this case it is considered that the time taken to:

(a) determine whether the scheduled public authority holds the information;

(b) locate the information, or a document which may contain the information;

(c) retrieve the information, or a document which may contain the information; and

(d) extract the information requested,

would exceed the amount / time limit provided for such matters under the Regulations. Accordingly, Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011, Article 16 has been applied.

3

The (SPA) does not hold meeting minutes, briefing notes, or internal correspondence where the use of the Minister’s powers under Article 7(4) of the Statutory Nuisances (Jersey) Law 1999 (to abate the nuisance and do whatever may be necessary in execution of the notice) was discussed, considered, or dismissed in favour of mediation, therefore and Article 3 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

4

Departmental guidance, policy documents, or internal memos used to determine when "mediation" is recommended as an alternative to the exercise of statutory powers under Article 7(4), particularly in instances of ongoing or repeated non-compliance with an Abatement Notice can be found on www.gov.je​ using the links below, therefore, Article 23 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 has been applied.

Jersey Regulators Code

Regulation Enforcement Policy

Infrastructure and Environment​

Articles applied

Article 3 - Meaning of “information held by a public authority”

For the purposes of this Law, information is held by a public authority if –

(a) it is held by the authority, otherwise than on behalf of another person; or

(b) it is held by another person on behalf of the authority.

Article 16 - A scheduled public authority may refuse to supply information if cost excessive

(1) A scheduled public authority that has been requested to supply information may refuse to supply the information if it estimates that the cost of doing so would exceed an amount determined in the manner prescribed by Regulations.

(3) Regulations may provide that, in such circumstances as the Regulations prescribe, if two or more requests for information are made to a scheduled public authority –

(a) by one person; or

(b) by different persons who appear to the scheduled public authority to be acting in concert or in pursuance of a campaign, the estimated cost of complying with any of the requests is to be taken to be the estimated total cost of complying with all of them.

Article 23 - Information accessible to applicant by other means

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it is reasonably available to the applicant, otherwise than under this Law, whether or not free of charge.

(2) A scheduled public authority that refuses an application for information on this ground must make reasonable efforts to inform the applicant where the applicant may obtain the information.

Article 25 - Personal information

(1) Information is absolutely exempt information if it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018.

(2) Information is absolutely exempt information if –

(a) it constitutes personal data of which the applicant is not the data subject as defined in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018; and

(b) its supply to a member of the public would contravene any of the data protection principles, as defined in that Law.​