DNREC FOIA Requests

The Delaware Freedom of Information Act (29 Del. Code, Chapter 100), generally referred to as FOIA, is the law that, in the words of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC), ensures that the public has easy access to public records held by DNREC and other state agencies. DNREC takes FOIA requests through its FOIA Coordinator, and its FOIA team follows DNREC's Policies and Procedures Regarding FOIA Requests, published in the Delaware Administrative Code.

In a Phase I ESA

A listing says a record exists. The reports and letters are in the file. Six Delaware details shape how to get one.

• Look online first. DNREC says it tries to make as much public information as possible available online, but that FOIA requests are sometimes required. It points to the Delaware Open Data Portal and its Delaware Environmental Navigator (DEN), a database of core environmental data and permitting and enforcement information. Its Tank Management Documents page says select scanned facility files are available through DEN. DNREC also says it is in the midst of a major project to create an online repository of public documents.
• Several programs name FOIA as their route. DNREC's underground tank, aboveground tank and storage tank corrective action pages each say a request for information may be made through FOIA. Its EPCRA pages say requests for information reported under EPCRA, such as inventory or release reports, should be made in writing through the FOIA Coordinator, and that a request for a facility's Safety Data Sheet goes to the coordinator too.
• The request may itself be a public record. DNREC's page says that under Delaware's FOIA, a request or petition, with any information in it and any documents attached to it, may itself be deemed a public record subject to disclosure. Write the request with that in mind.
• The right belongs to Delaware citizens. The Delaware Department of Justice's Policy Manual for FOIA Coordinators, as of October 1, 2025, says FOIA exists to give citizens of Delaware access to public records, and that a public body may grant a request from someone who is not a citizen but may also deny it for that reason alone. The manual says it does not have the force of law and is not binding on the Department, and that the Department's opinions and court decisions take precedence over it. A requester who is not a Delaware citizen can be refused on that ground alone.
• Fifteen business days. The Department's open government page says FOIA requires a public body to respond as soon as possible and no more than 15 business days after it receives a request. The response grants or denies access, or, where the records are voluminous, need legal advice or are in storage or an archive, says so and gives a good faith estimate of when a response will come. The manual counts a request as received when the body's FOIA coordinator receives it.
• Fees are set elsewhere. The Department's page says FOIA's own copy fees apply unless a public body has adopted different ones, and that the first 20 pages of standard black and white copies are free. DNREC's page links its Policies and Procedures Regarding FOIA Requests in the Delaware Administrative Code, which this handbook did not read, so look there for what DNREC charges.

Where to look a site up

Before a request, search DNREC's online tools: the Delaware Environmental Navigator, the DNREC Open Data page's list of datasets, and the DNREC Well Viewer. They are described on the Delaware overview.

Getting the file

• Online. The state's Freedom of Information Act Form, which DNREC says sends the request to the DNREC FOIA Coordinator.
• Email. DNREC's page gives the coordinator's mailbox, DNREC_FOIA_Request@delaware.gov.
• Phone. DNREC's contacts page lists FOIA Requests at 302-739-9034.

DNREC's FOIA Requests page also links the state's Freedom of Information Act topic page and a list of state agency FOIA coordinators.

Sources

Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control pages, read October 13, 2026:

• DNREC FOIA Requests, last modified September 14, 2026.
• How Can We Help?, last modified September 14, 2026.
• Underground Storage Tanks, last modified December 3, 2025.
• Aboveground Storage Tanks, last modified December 23, 2025.
• Storage Tank Corrective Action, last modified June 5, 2025.
• Tank Management Documents, last modified June 17, 2026.
• Data and Information, last modified September 14, 2022.
• DNREC Open Data, last modified June 22, 2026.
• The DNREC Well Viewer, last modified December 2, 2025.

State of Delaware page, read October 13, 2026:

• Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), last modified March 11, 2026.

Delaware Department of Justice pages, read October 13, 2026:

• Open Government, last modified September 23, 2026.
• Delaware Freedom of Information Act Policy Manual for FOIA Coordinators, as of October 1, 2025.