The Minister of State in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett, has today announced the launch of a new public portal for forestry licencing. This is called the Forestry Licence Viewer (FLV) and will provide free online access for the public to view forestry licence applications decisions.
The Minister said,
“I am delighted to announce the release of the Forestry Licence Viewer. This portal will provide members of the public with easier online access to forestry licence applications and will in time provide a repository of information on forestry licences, both applications and decisions. The portal enhances public participation in decisions on forestry licences and it also continues my Department’s commitment to providing digital services to our customers.”
The Viewer will be launched in three phases with today marking the launch of Phase 1. This first phase will show high-level site information for all applications since 1st January, 2018 and the status of those applications. Phase 2 will be released shortly and this will show application documentation on applications received from the date this phase goes live, including site assessments, reports and decisions. Phase 3 is planned for early 2021 and will provide an online tool to make a submission on an application.
The Minister continued,
“I gave commitments in the debate on the recent Forestry Act that I would be working towards aligning the forestry licensing and other planning processes. This is a major step in meeting those commitments and ensuring transparency and It will undoubtedly enhance public participation in decisions on forestry planning. I’m certain that interested users will find it to be user-friendly and informative. The next phases of the project will follow shortly and will enhance it even further.”
The FLV is available at www.gov.ie/en/publication/642e6-forestry/#forestry-licence-viewer
The Forestry Licence Viewer (FLV) will be released in three phases;
- Phase 1 – shows high-level site information with easy-to-use search tools. Users can use licence reference numbers, search by location – townland and county, use the recent applications list or zoom into a location. Different layers may be selected in the right-hand menus options and the user has a choice of map background.
- Phase 2 – application documentation will be published in the viewer, for applications received and decisions made on those applications from go-live date. This will include applicant information, supporting documents such as reports, assessments and any submissions received on an application. The decision on the application will also be published.
- Phase 3 – a link will be made available on applications that are open for public consultation, to allow interested parties to make a submission online and to pay the appropriate fee.
