ANSTO has published its Community Right to Know Charter, which provides the framework for interested parties to gain access to organisational information not currently in the public domain.
The process varies depending on the type of information requested and the amount of resources needed to respond.
The Charter has been drawn up in line with Government legislation that ANSTO is obliged to comply with, namely the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act.
ANSTO worked with selected members of the community, including the Sutherland Shire Council, to set up the charter. Although ANSTO would have liked to have published the Charter with full consensus of the consultation group, not all issues could be resolved, despite the use of a mediator. Hence, following direction from the Minister for the Environment and Heritage, ANSTO finalised the Charter and advised stakeholders.
The Charter has been made available through both the ANSTO website and local libraries. One significant advantage of the Charter to the community is that information previously subject to a charge under the FOI Act can now be obtained without charge.
Published: 23/12/2003