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Engage with forestry projects and plans

The Scottish Land rights and responsibilities statement set out the Scottish Governments commitment that local communities should be involved in decisions that affect them. 

Use our public registers to find details on proposed forestry work including decisions to approve or reject proposals.

Published: 24 Feb 2025

Topic: Engage with Scottish Forestry

There are 3 public registers, including the register of:

  • Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs)
  • woodland creation and felling permissions
  • felling permissions within forestry plans


Register of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs)

This register shows:

  • the decisions about whether proposals for certain forestry projects will significantly impact the environment

You can see details of the case and our decision at the initial assessment stage - otherwise known as the Screening Opinion stage. 

For cases where consent to carry out the work is needed, details of 2 more stages are displayed: 

  • when the applicant arranges a scoping meeting
  • our final decision on whether or not consent will be given to start the work 


What you can do

You can:

  • view the register and details of individual cases at the 3 possible stages
  • browse all opinions / decisions made by Scottish Forestry 
  • contact the relevant local Conservancy office to request or view copies of any case documentation

Find out more about the register of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA)

The Forestry (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 shows information about decisions that we make during the EIA process.

Register of woodland creation and felling permissions

This register shows FGS applications when we're prepared to approve them for:

  • woodland creation
  • agroforestry
  • location and area-based amendments to:
    • FGS woodland creation contracts
    • FGS agroforestry contracts

We publish the details of these applications on this register for 4 weeks, after we're sure:

  • application proposals are appropriate
  • there is agreement between stakeholders associated with each application

Once we're certain that the applicants have addressed any issues identified as a result of the public register period, we will then display the details on this register to confirm we've approved their application.


What you can do

When selecting the application you're interested in, you can:

  • see a map that shows the boundary of the application
  • view any case documents
  • make comments electronically directly to the conservancy (within 28 days from the date applications first appear)

Find out more about the register of woodland creation and felling permissions

This register contains details FGS applications for woodland creation and agroforestry, and tree Felling Permission applications.

Register of felling permissions within forestry plans

This register shows:

  • new and amended FGS long-term forest plans 
  • new and amended Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) land management plans

All forest plans include felling operations. When we're prepared to approve a new or amended forest plan, we add the details of the case to the register. These stay on it for 4 weeks. We display them again once approved.

This register also shows amendments to our legacy grant and regulatory schemes.

Only a small handful of legacy cases are still being worked on. But if an amendment is needed, then the details would appear on this register. This includes legacy:

  • rural priorities
  • Forestry Grant Scheme (FGS)
  • woodland grant scheme
  • dedication cases


What you can do

When selecting the application you're interested in, you can:

  • see a map that shows the boundary of the application
  • view any case documents
  • make comments electronically directly to the conservancy (within 28 days from the date applications first appear)

Find out more about the register of felling permission proposals contained with Forest Plan applications.

This register contains details of new and amended forest plans, both from Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS).

How we share personal information

For more information on how we share personal information relating to our consultation activities, please see our privacy notice.

Scottish Forestry privacy notice

Community engagement with forestry plans and proposals

How can communities and other stakeholders engage with land owners’ forestry plans and proposals? 

This guide sets out how and when engagement happens - as well as the roles and responsibilities of different parties. This document is also applicable to forestry professionals and landowners.
 

Find out how to consult with forestry plans and proposals

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