The Commissioner for Environmental Information (CEI) has told the Department of Agriculture it must release details of the locations of large cattle herds around Ireland.
Right to Know had looked for the data under Access to Information on the Environment (AIE) Regulations.
It’s important because the information could be used to map the high impact of intensive farming on the environment, especially on water quality.
The Department of Agriculture had argued that the information was personal and only provided aggregate figures by county.
However, the CEI said many large herds were operated by companies and therefore didn’t relate to individuals.
The decision also highlighted the fact that similar information is available for pig and poultry farms around Ireland.
The CEI said the public interest favoured disclosure and there were no significant private risks from release of the information.
You can read the full decision below.