Countryside Agency to receive powers to correct minor mapping errors

The Countryside Agency will receive powers to correct minor errors on 'provisional' and 'conclusive' maps of open country and registered common land. The regulations to enable the agency to receive these powers were laid before Parliament on 19 June and are due to come into force on 21 July.

Under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, the Countryside Agency has been required to prepare 'draft,' 'provisional' and 'conclusive' maps showing all open country (mountain, moor, heath and

down) and all registered common land in England.

After consulting on a draft map the agency is required to consider comments and representations before issuing a provisional map. People with a legal interest in the land may appeal to the Secretary of State against including land on a provisional map before the publication of the conclusive map.

The regulations will allow the agency to correct errors and omissions

for:

a) a provisional map, where the change does not reflect a decision made by the agency following consultation on the draft map,

b) a provisional map, where it can be shown that the error has arisen as a result of technical problems in the underlying mapping data.

c) a conclusive map, where the map does not reflect a modification required as a result of an appeal against the inclusion of land.

They also provide:

- arrangements for notification of land managers affected by the

correction of an error,

- a right of appeal where corrections involve adding land to a

provisional map,

- a three-month time limit on the agency to make a correction and the

same time limit for an appeal.

- arrangements for notice of modifications to be published in local

newspapers, and for the modifications to be reflected in maps

available for public inspection.

- for the agency to correct errors in provisional maps issued before

the regulations come into force, but only where such corrections

result in land being removed from the map.

The mapping process is an extremely complex task and these new powers will assist the Countryside Agency in its determination to ensure that the maps are as accurate and comprehensive as possible.