OFFICIAL
Cathy Minnucci
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx
Dear Mrs Minnucci
FOI IR 07/25/26 – Internal Review Decision Notice and Statement of Reasons
The purpose of this letter is to advise you of my decision following your request for an
internal review under section 54 of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act).
Background
On the 16 July 2025, you submitted a request under the following terms:
“Could I please obtain a copy of data and inputs that were used in the decision-making
and evidence collation, of the recently released (16/7/2025) PIR Recommendations 4 &
6 assessment report of the Hobart Airport flight paths.
Further to help and expediate request...
This would also include ALL ABS data and links, all inputs that formed the voting charts,
all CO2 emission calculations, ICOA formula's, Industry inputs, and documents that were
used to support the for the blanket statements made within this report.”
Original Decision
The original decision, dated 10 September 2025, identified 13 documents falling within
the scope of your request.
The decision was to:
a. release four documents in full;
b. partially release nine documents in accordance with section 22 [access to edited
copies with exempt or irrelevant matter deleted] of the FOI Act on the grounds that
the deleted material is considered exempt under section 47F [public interest
conditional exemptions – personal privacy] of the FOI Act; and
c. remove irrelevant material in accordance with section 22 of the FOI Act.
OFFICIAL
Grounds for Internal Review
In your request for internal review dated 11 September 2025, you raised the following
concern:
“Missing information:
Rec 4:
1. Overflown population figures broken down and reported in terms of each
community
2. Flight height estimates and altitudes over the communities and how was
estimate calculated and what direct area of land was used as the marker.
3. 70kg CO² calculations – provide actual mathematics on how this was
calculated (fuel burn/ passengers/ aircraft type/ pax)
4. Industry submission that mentioned CO² emission of 719 tonnes per year
5. Copy of raw online survey data
Rec 6:
1. Overflown population figures broken down and reported in terms of each
community
2. 174kg CO² calculations – provide actual mathematics on how this was
calculated (fuel burn/ passengers/ aircraft type/ pax)
3. Industry submission from Destination Southern Tasmania, East Coast
Tasmania Tourism and Tourism Industry Council Tasmania
4. Copy of raw online survey data
[Item 6] - I believe reporting may have used ICAO Carbon Emission Calculator so
also any images that explain how reported Rec4 & Rec 6 CO² figures were
obtained, would also be appreciated”
Reviewing Officer
I am authorised to conduct this internal review under section 23(1) of the FOI Act and
the Airservices Australia Instrument of Delegation and Authorisation.
Internal Review Process
Further searches were conducted to identify any additional documents or material falling
within the scope of your request.
OFFICIAL
Internal Review Decision
Following careful consideration of your request and the results of additional searches, I
have decided to vary the original decision.
• Six additional documents have been identified as falling within the scope of your
request for Rec 4 – Items 3 & 4 and Rec 6 – Items 2 & 3.
• No documents were identified for Rec 4- Items 1, 2, Rec 6 – Item 1
The decision in relation to the documents identified is detailed in the schedule of
documents at
Attachment A.
I have decided to:
a. release two documents in full;
b. refuse Items Rec 4 (1 – 2) and Rec 6 (1) of the request under section 24A
[requests may be refused if documents cannot be found, do not exist or have
not been received] of the FOI Act;
c. partially release four documents in accordance with section 22 [access to
edited copies with exempt or irrelevant matter deleted] of the FOI Act on the
grounds that the deleted material is considered exempt under section 47F
[public interest conditional exemptions – personal privacy] of the FOI Act; and
d. remove irrelevant material in accordance with section 22 of the FOI Act.
Material Taken into Account
In making my decision, I have had regard to:
a. the terms of the request and your subsequent internal review application;
b. the original decision dated the 10 September 2025;
c. relevant provisions of the FOI Act;
d. the Guidelines published by the Office of the Australian Information
e. advice received from officers within Airservices Australia Community
Engagement team; and
f. the views of third parties consulted under section 27 and 27A of the FOI
Act.
Reasons for Decision
Section 22 – Access to Edited Copies
Section 22 of the FOI Act allows an agency to provide access to an edited copy of a
document where parts of the document are exempt or contain information that is
reasonably considered irrelevant to the request.
Upon reviewing Document 2, identified during the internal review, I found that parts of
the content were not relevant to the scope of your request. I am satisfied that it is
reasonably practicable to remove the exempt and irrelevant material and to release the
document to you in an edited form.
OFFICIAL
Section 24A – Requests may be refused if documents cannot be found, do not
exist or have not been received
Section 24A(1) of the FOI Act states:
(1) An agency or Minister may refuse a request for access to a document if:
(a) all reasonable steps have been taken to find the document; and
(b) the agency or Minister is satisfied that the document:
(i) is in the agency’s or Minister’s possession but cannot be found;
or
(ii) does not exist.
Paragraph 3.94 of the Guidelines advises the detail this statement of reasons should
include to refuse a request under section 24A(l):
…the statement of reasons given to the applicant should sufficiently identify
the document, explain why it cannot be found or is known not to exist or to
be in the agency’s possession, describe the steps the agency took to
search for the document, and note the limitations of any search…
Regarding Rec 4 (Items 1 and 2) and Rec 6 (Item 1), the Airservices Community
Engagement team undertook comprehensive searches of Microsoft Outlook and the
Airservices Records Management System, using the search terms specified in the
scope. They have confirmed that no documents were identified as falling within the
scope of these items.
I am satisfied that all reasonable steps have been taken to locate the documents sought
by the applicant. I am satisfied that the documents cannot be found or do not exist, and
refuse Items Rec 4 (Items 1 and 2) and Rec 6 (Item 1) under section 24A(1) of the FOI
Act.
Section 47F – Public interest conditional exemptions - personal privacy
Section 47F(1) of the FOI Act states:
A document is conditionally exempt if its disclosure under this Act would
involve the unreasonable disclosure of personal information about any
person (including a deceased person).
The FOI Act shares the same definition of ‘personal information’ as the Privacy Act 1988
(Cth). The Guidelines provide that:
6.123 Personal information means information or an opinion about an
identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable:
(a) whether the information or opinion is true or not; and
(b) whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form
or not.
OFFICIAL
The documents were found to contain personal information about third parties, including
names, contact details, position titles, signatures, email addresses, and other personally
identifiable information. Disclosure of this material would reasonably be expected to
identify individuals.
In my assessment of whether the disclosure of personal information is unreasonable, I
considered the following factors in accordance with section 47F(2):
a. the extent to which the information is well known;
b. whether the person to whom the information relates is known to be (or to
have been) associated with the mat ers dealt with in the document;
c. the availability of the information from publicly accessible sources; and
d. the effect the release of the personal information could reasonably have
on the third party.
I found that the specific personal information listed is not well known, individuals whose
personal information is contained in the documents are not widely known to be
associated with the matters dealt with in the documents and the information is not readily
available from publicly accessible sources.
Accordingly, I am satisfied that the information contained in the documents is
conditionally exempt under section 47F of the Freedom of Information Act 1982.
Public interest considerations – section 47F
Section 11A(5) of the FOI Act states:
The agency or Minister must give the person access to the document
if it is conditionally exempt at a particular time unless (in the
circumstances) access to the document at that time would, on
balance, be contrary to the public interest.
I have considered the factors favouring disclosure as set out in section 11B(3) [factors
favouring access] of the FOI Act. The relevant factors being whether access to the
document would:
(a) promote the objects of this Act (including all the matters set out in
sections 3 and 3A);
(b) inform debate on a matter of public importance;
(c) promote effective oversight of public expenditure;
(d) allow a person to access his or her own personal information.
In my view, disclosure of this information would not increase public participation in
Airservices Australia process (section 3(2)(a) of the FOI Act), nor would it increase
scrutiny or discussion of Airservices Australia activities (section 3(2)(b) of the FOI Act).
Paragraph 6.233 of the Guidelines specifies a non-exhaustive list of public interest
factors against disclosure. The factors I find particularly relevant to this request are that
release of this information could reasonably be expected to prejudice:
OFFICIAL
• the protection of an individual’s right to privacy;
• the interests of an individual or a group of individuals;
• an agency’s ability to obtain confidential information;
• an agency’s ability to obtain similar information in the future;
• the management function of an agency; and
• the personnel management function of an agency.
I have not taken any of the factors listed in section 11B(4) [irrelevant factors] of the FOI
Act into account when making this decision.
I am satisfied, based on the above particulars, the public interest factors against
disclosure outweigh the factors for disclosure, and that, on balance, it is against the
public interest to release the information to you. Accordingly, I find that the information is
exempt under section 47F of the FOI Act.
Additional Information
In relation to Rec 4 – Item 5 and Rec 6 – Item 4, documents falling within scope were
included in the document package provided to you in response to FOI 07/25/26 on 10
September 2025. In relation to Item 6, the relevant information is publicly available.
The corresponding page numbers and website are listed below:
• Rec 4 – Item 5: Document 5 (page 15- 17)
• Rec 6 – Item 4: Document 6 (page 25 - 37)
• Item 6 - Available publicly
Recommendation 6 Options Assessment Report
Review Rights
If you are dissatisfied with my decision, you may apply to the Office of the Australian
Information Commissioner (OAIC) for a review. An application for review must be made
within 60 days of being notified of this decision. You may also make a complaint to the
OAIC about how Airservices Australia managed your request.
Further information about requesting a review, making a complaint, and the Freedom of
Information Act 1982 is available on the OAIC website at www.oaic.gov.au or by cal ing
1300 363 992.
Further Assistance
If you have any questions or are seeking any further clarification of my decision, please
contact
xxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.
Yours sincerely
BOURGET_ Digitally signed by
BOURGET_MR
MR
Date: 2025.10.08
15:47:35 +11'00'
Marcus Bourget
Authorised FOI Internal Review Decision Maker
OFFICIAL
ATTACHMENT A
SCHEDULE OF DOCUMENTS
Item no.
Doc Date
Description
Decision
#
Rec 4 – Item 3
1
Manual Emissions Calculation Rec 4
Full release
Rec 4 – Item 4
2 3/12/2024
Email
Partial release
section 47F – personal privacy
section 22(1)(a)(i ) out of scope information
Rec 6 – Item 2
3
Manual Emissions Calculation Rec 6
Full release
Rec 6 – Item 3
4 29/11/2025 Email
Partial release
section 47F – personal privacy
Rec 6 – Item 3
5 29/11/2024 Email
Partial release
section 47F – personal privacy
Rec 6 – Item 3
6 29/11/2024 Email
Partial release
section 47F – personal privacy
OFFICIAL
Document Outline
