M-15-2002
RE: GILL NETS -
ALBEMARLE SOUND MANAGEMENT AREA
Preston
P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, hereby announces that
effective at 12:01 A.M., Wednesday,
January 1, 2003, the following provisions shall apply to the use of gill
nets in the ALBEMARLE SOUND MANAGEMENT
AREA.
I.
AREA
DESCRIPTION:
The
Albemarle Sound Management Area as
described in Marine Fisheries Rule 15A NCAC 3O .0503 (b) (2) (A) (ii).
II. COMMERCIAL NET RESTRICTIONS:
Only
gill nets meeting the specified mesh lengths shall be used in the following
areas identified below. A fishing
operation, regardless of the number of vessels or persons involved, shall not
use more than the lengths of gill nets specified for the following areas:
Albemarle Sound, Currituck Sound,
Croatan Sound and Roanoke Sound
A.
Gill nets with a mesh
length of 3 inches shall not exceed 400 yards.
B.
Gill nets with a mesh
length of 3 ¼ inches shall not exceed 800 yards.
C.
Gill nets with a mesh
length of 3 ¾ and 4 inches may be used east of a line from Baum Point 35°
55.1602’ N-75° 39.5736’ W to Rhodoms Point 36° 00.2146’ N- 75° 43.6399’ W and
east of a line from Eagleton Point 36° 01.3178’ N- 75° 43.6585’ W to Long Point
36° 02.4971’N-75° 44.2261’ W at the mouth of Kitty Hawk Bay. Gill nets with a mesh length of 3 ¾ and 4
inches may also be used south of the Highway 64/264 bridge at Manns Harbor (Map
1). Gill nets with a mesh length of 3 ¾
and 4 inches shall not exceed 800 yards.
D. The
total amount of small mesh gill nets (3 inch, 3 ¼ inch, 3 ¾ inch, and 4 inch)
used shall not exceed 800 yards in
any combination. No other mesh sizes below 5 ¼ inches are allowed except those listed. Gill
nets with a mesh length of 5 ¼ inches and larger described in II. E. and F. may
not exceed 3,000 yards combined.
E. Gill
nets with a mesh length of 5¼ inches and larger that are equipped with floats
that do not exceed 2 inches in diameter and 6 inches in length placed a minimum
of 10 yards apart, not to exceed 11 floats per 100 yards of net. Nets must not exceed 3,000 yards in length
and must be set so as to fish on the bottom not to exceed a vertical height of
48 inches.
F.
All gill nets with a
mesh length of 5¼ inches and larger not meeting the criteria in Section II. E.
for floats are required to be equipped with tie downs spaced no farther apart
than 30 feet restricting the vertical distance between the top and bottom lines
to 48 inches or less. Nets must not
exceed 3000 yards in length.
III. SEASON
CLOSURE:
The
season for the use of commercial gear described in Section II. A., B. and C.,
and Section III., but excluding Section
II. E. and F., will close by
proclamation at a later date.
V.
RECREATIONAL NET RESTRICTIONS
The 100 yards of gill net allowed
Recreational Commercial Gear License holders must adhere to the net
configurations and mesh sizes in the waterbodies described in this proclamation
for commercial fishing operations. Marine Fisheries Rule
3M .0513 limits the number of blueback herring and alewife taken for
recreational purposes to 25 in the aggregate per person.
VI. GENERAL INFORMATION:
A.
This proclamation is issued under the
authority of G.S. 113-170.4; 113-170.5;113-182; 113-221(e); 143B-289.52 and
N.C. Marine Fisheries Rule 15A NCAC 3H .0103 and 3J .0103, 3Q .0107(1)(c) and
3M .0202 and 3M .0513.
B.
It is unlawful to violate provisions of
any proclamation issued by the Fisheries Director under his delegated authority
per 15A NCAC 3H .0103.
C. The
intent of this proclamation is to allow directed fisheries for mullet, white
perch, hickory shad and flounder while managing Albemarle Sound Management Area
striped bass and river herring stocks within the quota established by the North
Carolina Estuarine Striped Bass Fishery Management Plan, the Albemarle Sound
Area River Herring Fishery Management Plan, and controlling the bycatch of
striped bass in directed gill net fisheries.
D. This proclamation supersedes
Proclamation M-14-2002, dated November 16, 2002.
December 18, 2002
9:30 A.M.
M-15-2002
/sav