Environmental Impact Assessment (Forestry) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2000

Request to the Department to reconsider its opinion

7.—(1) The proposer may apply in writing to the Department for a reconsideration of its opinion whether a project is a relevant project where—

(a) the Department gives notice of its opinion under regulation 6(1) or regulation 6(5) that the project is or would be a relevant project; or

(b) the Department fails to give notice of its opinion within the period of time required by regulation 6(1).

(2) An application under paragraph (1) shall be accompanied by, or by copies of—

(a) any application by the proposer to the Department under regulation 5(1) and any documents supplied to the Department by the proposer in connection with that application; and

(b) in a case falling within paragraph (1)(a), the opinion of the Department and any written statement of the reasons which it provided with it,

and may include such further information or representations as the proposer may wish to provide or make.

(3) Where the Department considers that the documents supplied to it under paragraph (2) do not provide sufficient information to enable it to reconsider its opinion, it shall notify the proposer in writing of the matters on which further information is required.

(4) The Department shall reconsider the opinion to which it relates within 28 days (or such longer period as it may reasonably require) beginning with—

(a) the date of receipt of the application under paragraph (1); or

(b) where it required or sought further information under paragraph (3), the date of receipt by the Department of that information.

(5) Subject to paragraph (6), in considering whether the project is likely to have significant effects on the environment, the Department shall take into account the selection criteria in Schedule 3.

(6) In a case where the project does not exceed any relevant threshold set out in Schedule 2, the Department shall make its decision in accordance with regulation 3(3) except where, in its opinion, there are exceptional circumstances which, taking account of the selection criteria in Schedule 3, make it likely that the project will have significant effects on the environment.

(7) After reconsidering its opinion in pursuance of paragraph (4) the Department may—

(a) affirm that opinion; or

(b) substitute therefor such other opinion as seems to it to be appropriate in the circumstances.

(8) The Department shall provide an applicant under paragraph (1) with a written statement of the decision it has reached in relation to his application under paragraph (6) including, where the decision is that the project is or would be a relevant project, the reasons for that decision.

(9) In paragraph (6), the reference to circumstances which are, in the opinion of the Department, exceptional shall be construed in accordance with paragraph 4 of Schedule 2.