Official Information Act request: Environmental monitoring or oversight relating to Defence facilities
SPENCER JONES made this Official Information request to Environmental Protection Authority
Currently waiting for a response from Environmental Protection Authority, they must respond promptly and normally no later than (details and exceptions).
From: SPENCER JONES
Kia ora,
I am making this request under the Official Information Act 1982.
Scope and purpose
This request seeks information held by the Environmental Protection Authority relating to environmental monitoring, chemical oversight, or regulatory interactions involving Defence-related facilities or contractors.
It does not seek personal information and does not assert liability.
Timeframe
1 January 2000 to 31 December 2025.
Information requested
Please provide copies of any records held by the EPA that fall within the following classes:
Environmental monitoring data, reports, or assessments relating to Defence facilities or Defence-contracted activities.
Records relating to chemical agents, herbicides, fuels, or solvents used on Defence estates, including approvals, restrictions, or compliance documentation.
Correspondence between the EPA and NZDF, the Ministry of Defence, or Defence contractors relating to environmental hazards or monitoring.
Any complaints, incident notifications, or follow-up actions relating to environmental contamination or exposure involving Defence facilities.
Records not held
If any information within scope is stated to be “not held”, please advise:
whether the information was ever created;
if created, the retention policy or disposal authority relied upon;
whether another agency or authority may hold the information.
Electronic copies are preferred.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
From: Ministerials
Environmental Protection Authority
Kia ora Spencer
Thanks for emailing us. This has been logged as an Official Information
Act (OIA) request.
Under the OIA, the EPA has 20 working days to make a decision on your
request. We will respond as quickly as possible
Ngā mihi
Anna
[1]The EPA's logo in a dark teal colour.
Follow us on [2]Facebook, [3]Instagram, and [4]LinkedIn.
Our New Zealand Business Number is 9429041901977.
This email message and any attachment(s) are intended for the addressee(s)
only.
If you receive this message in error, please notify the sender and delete
the message and any attachment(s).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: SPENCER JONES <[FOI #33541 email]>
Sent: Sunday, 18 January 2026 2:56 pm
To: Ministerials <[EPA request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - Official Information Act request:
Environmental monitoring or oversight relating to Defence facilities
[You don't often get email from
[FOI #33541 email]. Learn why this is
important at [5]https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
Kia ora,
I am making this request under the Official Information Act 1982.
Scope and purpose
This request seeks information held by the Environmental Protection
Authority relating to environmental monitoring, chemical oversight, or
regulatory interactions involving Defence-related facilities or
contractors.
It does not seek personal information and does not assert liability.
Timeframe
1 January 2000 to 31 December 2025.
Information requested
Please provide copies of any records held by the EPA that fall within the
following classes:
Environmental monitoring data, reports, or assessments relating to Defence
facilities or Defence-contracted activities.
Records relating to chemical agents, herbicides, fuels, or solvents used
on Defence estates, including approvals, restrictions, or compliance
documentation.
Correspondence between the EPA and NZDF, the Ministry of Defence, or
Defence contractors relating to environmental hazards or monitoring.
Any complaints, incident notifications, or follow-up actions relating to
environmental contamination or exposure involving Defence facilities.
Records not held
If any information within scope is stated to be “not held”, please advise:
whether the information was ever created;
if created, the retention policy or disposal authority relied upon;
whether another agency or authority may hold the information.
Electronic copies are preferred.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #33541 email]
Is [EPA request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Environmental Protection Authority? If so, please contact us
using this form:
[6]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[7]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
References
Visible links
1. http://www.epa.govt.nz/
2. Original URL: https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/
3. Original URL: https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/
4. Original URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt...
5. https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
6. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
7. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
From: Ministerials
Environmental Protection Authority
Kia ora Spencer
I'm getting in touch about your OIA request requesting information held by
the EPA about the New Zealand Defence Force.
We are seeking clarification and a refinement of your request. In its
current form your request is very broad and covers a significant period of
time.
We have done a search of our records, and given the way your request is
worded, an initial search indicates there are over 20,000 documents that
we would need to search through further to find information relevant to
your request. This is because we have multiple business groups across the
EPA that may hold information relevant to your request. We are not in a
position to undertake this exercise.
Finding, scoping and assessing the information in scope of your request
would be a significant undertaking for the Environmental Protection
Authority (EPA), and we consider it would have an onerous impact on the
operations of our organisation.
We want to work with you to provide information relevant to your query:
1. Are you able to indicate any specific events or incidents that you
might be aware of that we could search our records for?
2. Are there any chemical agents, herbicides, fuels, or solvents that you
could name that we could search our records for?
3. Are you able to narrow the timeframe for your request down to a few
years - such as from 2023-2025?
We invite you to further specify the information you are seeking, and if
possible, refer to which legislation we administer that it relates to.
You can find out more information about the EPA's regulatory
responsibilities here: [1]Our legislation | EPA
If you’re not willing or able to refine and narrow your request, we may
need to consider our options under the Official Information Act 1982, such
as refusing your request under section 18(f) of the Act because the
information requested cannot be made available without substantial
collation and research.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Ngâ mihi
Anna
[2]The EPA's logo in a dark teal colour.
Follow us on [3]Facebook, [4]Instagram, and [5]LinkedIn.
Our New Zealand Business Number is 9429041901977.
This email message and any attachment(s) are intended for the addressee(s)
only.
If you receive this message in error, please notify the sender and delete
the message and any attachment(s).
show quoted sections
From: SPENCER JONES <[FOI #33541 email]>
Sent: Sunday, 18 January 2026 2:56 pm
To: Ministerials <[EPA request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - Official Information Act request:
Environmental monitoring or oversight relating to Defence facilities
[You don't often get email from
[FOI #33541 email]. Learn why this is
important at [10]https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
Kia ora,
I am making this request under the Official Information Act 1982.
Scope and purpose
This request seeks information held by the Environmental Protection
Authority relating to environmental monitoring, chemical oversight, or
regulatory interactions involving Defence-related facilities or
contractors.
It does not seek personal information and does not assert liability.
Timeframe
1 January 2000 to 31 December 2025.
Information requested
Please provide copies of any records held by the EPA that fall within the
following classes:
Environmental monitoring data, reports, or assessments relating to Defence
facilities or Defence-contracted activities.
Records relating to chemical agents, herbicides, fuels, or solvents used
on Defence estates, including approvals, restrictions, or compliance
documentation.
Correspondence between the EPA and NZDF, the Ministry of Defence, or
Defence contractors relating to environmental hazards or monitoring.
Any complaints, incident notifications, or follow-up actions relating to
environmental contamination or exposure involving Defence facilities.
Records not held
If any information within scope is stated to be “not held”, please advise:
whether the information was ever created;
if created, the retention policy or disposal authority relied upon;
whether another agency or authority may hold the information.
Electronic copies are preferred.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #33541 email]
Is [EPA request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Environmental Protection Authority? If so, please contact us
using this form:
[11]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[12]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
References
Visible links
1. Original URL: https://www.epa.govt.nz/about-us/our-leg.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.epa.govt.nz/about-us/our-leg...
2. http://www.epa.govt.nz/
3. Original URL: https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/
4. Original URL: https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/
5. Original URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt...
6. http://www.epa.govt.nz/
7. Original URL: https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/
8. Original URL: https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/
9. Original URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt...
10. https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
11. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
12. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
From: Ministerials
Environmental Protection Authority
Kia ora Spencer
I'm following up on my email from 2 February about your OIA request.
Please can you respond at your earliest convivence, as this will assist us
with responding to your request.
Ngā mihi
Anna
[1]The EPA's logo in a dark teal colour.
Follow us on [2]Facebook, [3]Instagram, and [4]LinkedIn.
Our New Zealand Business Number is 9429041901977.
This email message and any attachment(s) are intended for the addressee(s)
only.
If you receive this message in error, please notify the sender and delete
the message and any attachment(s).
show quoted sections
From: Ministerials <[EPA request email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 20 January 2026 3:40 pm
To: SPENCER JONES <[FOI #33541 email]>
Subject: Re: Official Information request - Official Information Act
request: Environmental monitoring or oversight relating to Defence
facilities
Kia ora Spencer
Thanks for emailing us. This has been logged as an Official Information
Act (OIA) request.
Under the OIA, the EPA has 20 working days to make a decision on your
request. We will respond as quickly as possible
Ngā mihi
Anna
[10]The EPA's logo in a dark teal colour.
Follow us on [11]Facebook, [12]Instagram, and [13]LinkedIn.
Our New Zealand Business Number is 9429041901977.
This email message and any attachment(s) are intended for the addressee(s)
only.
If you receive this message in error, please notify the sender and delete
the message and any attachment(s).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: SPENCER JONES <[FOI #33541 email]>
Sent: Sunday, 18 January 2026 2:56 pm
To: Ministerials <[EPA request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - Official Information Act request:
Environmental monitoring or oversight relating to Defence facilities
[You don't often get email from
[FOI #33541 email]. Learn why this is
important at [14]https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
Kia ora,
I am making this request under the Official Information Act 1982.
Scope and purpose
This request seeks information held by the Environmental Protection
Authority relating to environmental monitoring, chemical oversight, or
regulatory interactions involving Defence-related facilities or
contractors.
It does not seek personal information and does not assert liability.
Timeframe
1 January 2000 to 31 December 2025.
Information requested
Please provide copies of any records held by the EPA that fall within the
following classes:
Environmental monitoring data, reports, or assessments relating to Defence
facilities or Defence-contracted activities.
Records relating to chemical agents, herbicides, fuels, or solvents used
on Defence estates, including approvals, restrictions, or compliance
documentation.
Correspondence between the EPA and NZDF, the Ministry of Defence, or
Defence contractors relating to environmental hazards or monitoring.
Any complaints, incident notifications, or follow-up actions relating to
environmental contamination or exposure involving Defence facilities.
Records not held
If any information within scope is stated to be “not held”, please advise:
whether the information was ever created;
if created, the retention policy or disposal authority relied upon;
whether another agency or authority may hold the information.
Electronic copies are preferred.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #33541 email]
Is [EPA request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Environmental Protection Authority? If so, please contact us
using this form:
[15]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[16]https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
References
Visible links
1. http://www.epa.govt.nz/
2. Original URL: https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/
3. Original URL: https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/
4. Original URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt...
5. Original URL: https://www.epa.govt.nz/about-us/our-leg.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.epa.govt.nz/about-us/our-leg...
6. http://www.epa.govt.nz/
7. Original URL: https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/
8. Original URL: https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/
9. Original URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt...
10. http://www.epa.govt.nz/
11. Original URL: https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.facebook.com/EPAgovtNZ/
12. Original URL: https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/. Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.instagram.com/epagovtnz/
13. Original URL: https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt.... Click or tap if you trust this link.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/epagovt...
14. https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentific...
15. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
16. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
From: SPENCER JONES
Kia ora Anna,
Thank you for your email and for outlining the EPA’s preliminary scoping work.
I am willing to refine the request in order to assist the EPA to respond, while preserving the underlying purpose of the inquiry, which is to understand what environmental monitoring, chemical oversight, or regulatory interaction (if any) the EPA has had in relation to Defence facilities or Defence-contracted activities.
To assist, I propose the following clarification and refinement.
Scope refinement (by function rather than incident):
Rather than seeking all potentially relevant material across the organisation, the request can be treated as limited to information held by the EPA in connection with its statutory functions, including but not limited to:
- HSNO approvals, reassessments, compliance, enforcement, or monitoring;
- hazardous substance or chemical regulation relevant to Defence estates or Defence contractors;
- incident notifications, complaints, or regulatory interactions where Defence facilities or Defence-contracted activities were the subject.
Timeframe refinement (segmented rather than truncated):
If helpful for manageability, the request can be processed in stages, for example:
- 2010–2025 as a primary period; and
- earlier material (2000–2009) limited to any high-level records, incident notifications, or approvals of ongoing relevance.
Incidents and substances:
I am not aware of specific incidents or chemical agents in advance, which is why the request is framed at a regulatory and oversight level. I therefore do not seek to limit the request to named substances or events, as this information (if held) would reasonably sit with the EPA.
I do not seek personal information, and I am content for the EPA to advise where no information is held, including whether records were ever created, disposed of under an applicable authority, or are more appropriately held by another agency.
If the EPA considers that a different refinement would better align with its records systems while still addressing the oversight question, I am open to discussing that.
Kind regards,
Spencer Jones
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence (note: this contains the same information already available above).
Offensive? Unsuitable?
Requests for personal information and vexatious requests are not considered valid requests for Official Information (read more).
If you believe this request is not suitable, you can report it for attention by the site administrators
Report this requestAct on what you've learnt
Similar requests
143 people poisoned by 1080 as per manaaki whenua OIA.
To Environmental Protection Authority by H Enderby (Account suspended)
SPENCER JONES left an annotation ()
Public annotation — What this OIA has (and has not) established so far
This Official Information Act request was submitted to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to understand whether, and to what extent, the EPA has held environmental monitoring, chemical oversight, or regulatory records relating to New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) facilities or Defence-contracted activities.
Current status
This request is not closed and has not been refused.
The EPA has acknowledged the request and has formally sought clarification and refinement under its duty to assist (section 13 of the Official Information Act), signalling that—as originally framed—the request could involve a very large volume of material across multiple EPA business units.
The EPA has indicated that an initial scoping exercise suggested more than 20,000 documents could potentially fall within scope, and has therefore asked the requester to narrow the request to avoid a possible refusal under section 18(f) (substantial collation and research).
A refined response has been provided to the EPA to allow the request to proceed in a manageable and lawful way, without abandoning its core purpose.
⸻
🔍 What the EPA has not yet provided
At this stage, the EPA has not released any documents and has not confirmed holding or not holding specific records relating to:
• environmental monitoring of Defence facilities;
• chemical or hazardous substance oversight of Defence estates or contractors;
• incident notifications, complaints, or follow-up actions involving Defence sites;
• regulatory correspondence between the EPA and NZDF or Defence contractors.
Importantly, the EPA has not stated that such information does not exist — only that, without refinement, the search burden would be substantial.
⸻
🧭 Why this matters
This OIA is not about alleging harm or liability. Its purpose is to answer a narrower but fundamental public-interest question:
What environmental and chemical regulatory oversight, if any, has occurred in relation to Defence facilities — and where does accountability sit if such oversight is absent?
The fact that an environmental regulator must first clarify whether such information can be practically identified is itself informative. If, after refinement, the EPA ultimately confirms that it holds little or no information, that outcome would still be significant: it would point to a structural oversight gap rather than a simple absence of documents.
⸻
🧩 What happens next
The request is now proceeding in a refined form that focuses on:
• the EPA’s statutory functions (e.g. hazardous substances regulation, approvals, compliance, incident notifications);
• Defence-related matters within those functions;
• staged or segmented timeframes rather than an all-or-nothing search.
Once the EPA responds substantively, this annotation will be updated to reflect:
• what information is held;
• what is confirmed as not held;
• whether records were never created, disposed of, or held by another agency.
⸻
📰 For readers and journalists
This request sits alongside other OIAs examining Defence accountability, environmental exposure, and veteran health oversight. Even a “no records held” outcome would be a meaningful finding, as it would clarify where responsibility has not been exercised — and where further scrutiny may be required.
Further annotations will link this request to related OIAs to make systemic patterns visible.
Link to this