Publication
Foreshore: Your questions answered
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
The following questions relate to foreshore and foreshore consents and applications for consents (lease or licence) as defined under the Foreshore Act 1933 as amended.
From 17th July 2023, foreshore applications will no longer be accepted by Department of Housing Local Government and Heritage. All new applications for consents in the maritime area must be submitted to the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority. Application forms and guidance are available on the website of the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority .
The foreshore of Ireland is classed as the land and seabed between the high water of ordinary or medium tides (shown HWM on Ordnance Survey maps) and the twelve-mile limit (12 nautical miles equals approximately 22.24 kilometers). Foreshore also covers tidal areas of rivers particularly estuaries.
All the foreshore of Ireland is presumed to be owned by the State unless valid alternative title is provided.
A lease is generally issued for a development that requires exclusive occupation of the foreshore. Developments requiring a lease would include for example: jetties, bridges, piers, marinas, offshore windfarms and reclamation of any foreshore.
A licence is generally issued for a development that does not require exclusive occupation of the foreshore. Examples would include repair work, some coastal protection work, undersea pipelines, cables, site investigation works, dredging works and harvesting of wild seaweed.
All applications are publicly advertised by means of a newspaper notice and the application documents are made available locally and on the department’s website. Any person can submit comments on an application which will be considered in the department’s assessment of the application.
In order to develop an offshore energy project (wind, wave, tidal, oil, gas) it is first necessary to obtain a foreshore site investigation licence to asses the suitability of the site for the intended renewable energy project. Depending on the results of the site investigation, the applicant may then apply for a foreshore lease to develop and operate the project though it should be borne in mind that other consents also need to be acquired such as planning permission, consent from the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) and so on. Pending a review of leasing policy with regard to offshore energy developments, applications for commercial ORE developments are not currently being accepted by the department. Applications for site investigations and demonstration projects will be considered.
There is a charge for a lease or licence for all state-owned foreshore.
A standard lease or licence will be drawn up. While the majority of the conditions will be standard the individual lease or licence will reflect the project that is the subject of the lease / licence. A schedule to the lease / licence will include site-specific conditions.
Section 10(2) of the Foreshore Act requires that Ministerial consent under the Act must be obtained prior to undertaking works on private foreshore.
Developments on state or private foreshore adjoining the functional area of a Planning Authority require planning permission in addition to a foreshore consent. Please note that depending upon the nature of the development/activity additional consents may be required from other statutory bodies, for example a Waste Water Discharge Authorisation from the EPA.
Certain development types also require other statutory consents.
Yes, you need a foreshore licence/lease/permission to extract material (such as beach sand or seaweed) from the foreshore.
It must be remembered that the State as the owner of the foreshore in general and, in common with any other landowner, needs to consent to any activity on its land to ensure the foreshore is protected. The department licences, for instance, such activities as horseracing and filming on the foreshore under Section 3.3 of the Foreshore Acts. The Laytown races are an example of the former and "Saving Private Ryan" of the latter.
Yes, moorings require a foreshore licence, where possible moorings will be licenced under section 3(3) of the Foreshore Act. Applications for large conglomerations of moorings or those sited in sensitive areas may require more detailed review.
Yes. It should be noted that the granting of such a licence does not confer an exclusive right to harvest seaweed in the area the subject of the licence.
Ministerial consent is required for any proposed reassignment. Please contact Marine Planning and Foreshore Section directly for more information.
No. Where this situation arises, the usual course of action is for the original licence to be extinguished and for the new owner to make an application for a new licence.
No. The National Parks and Wildlife Service of the department regulate shooting on the foreshore. Please contact wildlifelicence@ahg.gov.ie