Forest Licenses
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Forest Licenses
Short Term
Short licenses apply to unprotected national lands, lease lands and private properties. The number of STFLs issued from one year to another vary as forest lands are cleared for various purposes ranging from agriculture to residential development. The granting of a license on national land is dependent on a Harvest Suitability Assessment (HSA), an assessment that determines species presence and timber stock estimates. For lease and private lands, a rapid field assessment is conducted to verify location, boundary demarcation, accessibility, as well as timber stocks. All short-term licenses are for one harvest year.
Long Term
Long-term forest licenses are licenses for sustained working of timber. This applies to forests in forest reserves, private forest reserves, as well as community-based managed forests. Sustainable forest management is achieved through the long-term planning and use of our forest resources.. The duration of LTFL’s extends from twenty (20) to forty (40) years.
The types of forest licenses/permits issued under this category include the following:
- Long-Term Forest Licenses (LTFLs)
- Long-Term Private Forest permits (LTPFPs)
- Medium-Term Forest Licenses (MTFLs)
Mangroves
As per the Forests (Protection of Mangroves) Regulations, 2018, no person shall alter, allow or cause any mangrove to be altered unless the alteration is carried out under a permit issued by the Belize Forest Department.
All applications received for alterations greater than 10 acres should be reviewed by a Panel nominated by the Minister. The review panel will provide recommendations to the Forest Department on whether to approve or object to the application.
The Forest Department will make its decision to approve or refuse an application for alteration no later than sixty days after the receipt date and will notify the applicant in writing.
Factors considered when reviewing applications:
- Distance of the proposed alteration from a designated park of other protected areas.
- Impact on nearby coastal and reef areas, known to be of high ecological value.
- Potential for direct and indirect economic benefits from the development.
- Presence of overwash mangroves.
- Alignment of the development with existing or proposed national, regional and local land-use plans.
- Carbon storage and sequestration potential of the mangroves.
- The current condition of mangroves.
If a permit is granted, the permit holder should install, at the location where the mangrove alteration or selective trimming will occur, a displayed sign with a waterproof copy of the permit. The sign shall remain in place for the duration of the alteration or selective trimming.
The dimensions of the sign shall be 4×4 feet and contain the words “Mangrove Alteration in Progress” of “Mangrove Selective Trimming in Process”.
Licenses
Licenses
Application Fees
Type
Residential
Commercial
Mainland
$50.00 BZ
$500.00 BZ
From the mainland to the reef
$100.00 BZ
$1,000.00 BZ
Beyond the reef
$200.00 BZ
$2,000.00 BZ
Permit Fees
License Type
Residential
Commercial
Mainland
$800.00 BZ (per acre)
$2,500.00 BZ (per acre)
From the mainland to the reef
$1,600.00 BZ (per acre)
$5,000.00 BZ (per acre)
Beyond the reef
$3,200.00 BZ (per acre)
$10,000.00 BZ (per acre)