Application for New Beds

Applications must be made to the Marine Consents and Environment Unit (MCEU) for any works at sea.

The MCEU is an alliance of the Marine Environment Branch of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and Ports Division (Casework Branch) of the Department for Transport.

The job of the MCEU is to provide a central facility for receipt and administration on behalf of both Departments of applications to undertake works in tidal waters and at sea, including marine developments, offshore energy, coast defences, dredging and waste disposal. The Unit also administers certain applications on behalf of the Welsh Assembly Government which is the licensing authority in Welsh waters.

This website aims to provide information about the consents regimes for which the MCEU has responsibility, the arrangements for making an application to undertake marine works and the procedures for determining such applications. It also serves as a 'portal' for the access of more general information about other marine controls as well as marine environmental and navigational safety matters.