Press Release – Government Press Office – August 4, 2017 – The Lands and Surveys Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources hereby informs the public that national lands, which are the property of the State, include the seabed and all reservations along all water frontages including rivers and the sea, commonly referred to as the 66-feet reserve measured from the high-water mark.
The public is accordingly reminded that any occupation of the seabed and 66-feet reserve, including occupation by way of piers, jetties, wharves, seawalls, cabanas, beach umbrellas and chairs for patrons, etc., without the requisite permission from the Minister of Natural Resources is unlawful and illegal and subject to civil action and/or criminal prosecution.
The Ministry advises the public that there is an official process for obtaining permission to use the seabed or 66-feet reserve, and invites interested persons to visit the main office of the Lands and Surveys Department in Belmopan for more information.
The public is further advised that permission by the Minister of Natural Resources to use the seabed or 66-feet reserve does not exclude any other authorization that may be required by law, such as a dredging permit from the Mining Unit of the Ministry of Natural Resources or an environmental permit from the Department of the Environment of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Forestry, the Environment, Sustainable Development, and Climate Change. Persons applying to the Minister of Natural Resources for permission to use the seabed or 66-feet reserve have the responsibility to find out about and obtain any other authorization that may be required by law.
The Ministry, through the Lands and Surveys Department, reminds all holders of permission granted by the Minister of Natural Resources to use the seabed or 66-feet reserve that their permission is liable to revocation for failure to comply with the terms and conditions, for example, regarding payment of fees and public access or use.
