What are your organisations concerns if you were to receive a digital, web based, versus a paper based Environmental Statement? Do you think your organisation would accept a digital ES (assuming it contains the correct information you would expect from an ES)? Do you foresee any legal or regulatory reasons why your organisation would not accept a digital Environmental Statement?

Dear Rufus, Many thanks for your patience in waiting for our response to the questions you asked in your email 21st April 2017. My assumption based on earlier correspondence is that the questions below relate primarily to applications prepared in respect of the Planning Act 2008 (as amended). For ease of reading I have duplicated your questions (in blue text) and then follow with my response. I hope these points will provide you with the information that you require. What are your organisations concerns if you were to receive a digital, web based, versus a paper based Environmental Statement? The Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2009 (2009 EIA Regulations) includes a definition of Environmental Statement (ES) and states that: “environmental statement” means a statement— (a) that includes such of the information referred to in Part 1 of Schedule 4 as is reasonably required to assess the environmental effects of the development and of any associated development and which the applicant can, having regard in particular to current knowledge and methods of assessment, reasonably be required to compile; but (b) that includes at least the information referred to in Part 2 of Schedule 4; Accordingly it is apparent that the 2009 EIA Regulations do not explicitly define the ES as being (or needing to be) a paper based document. However, the 2009 EIA Regulations do frequently refer to ‘copies’ in respect of the ES, which may imply that the Regulations envisage the ES is a physical entity rather than a digital only document. Nonetheless this is not explicitly stated in the 2009 EIA Regulations. The Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) 2017 Regulations (2017 EIA Regulations) which have now been made and will come into force on 16th May 2017 includes provision requiring that the ES is available on a website maintained by or on behalf of the Secretary of State. As with the existing 2009 EIA Regulations the 2017 EIA Regulations do not explicitly state that the ES should be a paper based document. The Infrastructure Planning (Applications Prescribed Forms and Procedures) Regulations 2009 (as amended) state that if requested by the Planning Inspectorate the Applicant should provide three paper copies of the application form and other supporting documents and plans. This would include paper copies of the ES as a supporting document. Further to this the Planning Inspectorate Advice Note 6: Preparation and submission of application documents includes advice that states: The applicant is required to submit its full application in both electronic and hard copy format. Whilst the Planning Inspectorate encourages electronic working, the submission of hard copy documents and plans is required in order to ensure the smooth running of the examination process. Applicants should agree with the case manager how many paper and electronic copies of the application should be submitted as this depends on the scale and complexity of the project. Usually two paper copies of the full application submission are required along with three electronic (eg DVD, memory stick) copies. Following the acceptance of an application, further paper and/or electronic copies of the application may be requested depending on the number of Inspectors, assessors or legal advisors that are appointed to the case. The applicant may also be requested to provide further copies of the entire application or copies of particular individual documents at any point throughout the pre-examination and examination stages. Therefore, it is clear that at this present time the Planning Inspectorate considers that paper copies of the application documents are necessary for the smooth running of the examination process. Do you think your organisation would accept a digital ES (assuming it contains the correct information you would expect from an ES)? As the advice states above the submission of the application should include electronic versions of the application documents (eg DVD or memory stick). Do you foresee any legal or regulatory reasons why your organisation would not accept a digital Environmental Statement? The Planning Inspectorate is unable to provide legal advice and so is unable to answer this question comprehensively; however, the advice contained above provides examples of the legislative requirements regarding the preparation of an application including any ES necessary. The current advice prepared by the Planning Inspectorate requires that paper copies of the application documents are necessary for the smooth running of the examination process.