Marine Consents Guide

For the latest information on marine consents, please see the published papers from the Forum's 'Decision Making in the Coastal Zone' workshop, that took place in January 2008.

There are many considerations to take in to account when deciding to undertake activities in the marine environment. This Guide provides a signposting service to show what consents and licences will need to be obtained when undertaking specific activities. It will help to clarify the type of consent needed, where to go to get it and give basic information on the application process. It is the duty of the relevant authority who grants the licence or consent to determine whether or not an application meets their criteria. In may cases the consenting authority produces detailed information on the respective consent and its application process. Applicants should, therefore, ask the relevant authority for this information before making an application.

This is the first edition of the Marine Consents Guide, (pdf file) produced by the Solent Forum. It is a text only version, to receive a hard copy (if available) please contact the Solent Forum Office.

This version is a ‘working document’ and will be revised and updated as required. It was first published in May 2002 and last updated in 2007.

For further information on Habitat Regulations Guidance see Natural England's guidance notes.