PROCLAMATION
RE: STRIPED BASS SEASON - COMMERCIAL FISHING
OPERATIONS- CAPE FEAR RIVER
Preston
P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, hereby announces that
effective at 12:01 A.M., Tuesday,
January 6, 2004, the striped bass season will open in the following areas for COMMERCIAL FISHING
OPERATIONS. The following restrictions
apply:
I. AREA
DESCRIPTION:
All internal Joint and Coastal waters of the Cape Fear River including tributaries up to the Inland water boundaries only.
II. SIZE AND HARVEST LIMITS:
A. No
person may take, possess, buy, sell or offer for sale striped bass less than 18
inches in length.
B.
No individual or fishing operation may
take, possess, transport, buy, sell, or offer for sale more than five (5) striped
bass per day in any combined fishing operation regardless of the number of
persons or boats involved or regardless of where taken from internal waters.
III. PERMITS:
A. No
finfish dealer may possess, buy, sell or offer for sale striped bass taken from
the areas opened by this proclamation without first obtaining a valid 2004 Striped Bass Dealer Permit
validated for the Cape Fear River from the North Carolina Division of Marine
Fisheries. Dealers must abide by all
of the conditions which appear on the
permit as well as the general provisions which appear in 15A NCAC 3O. 0500.
B. Only
a STRIPED BASS DEALER PERMIT validated for the Cape Fear River may be used for
transactions involving striped bass taken from the areas opened by this
proclamation.
C. Striped
bass lawfully sold to a permitted dealer may be resold to a non-permitted
wholesale or retail market provided the initial permitted dealer records their
dealer identification number on each bill of lading or receipts involved in the
shipment of striped bass. Any
individual or corporation who holds a current dealer license must obtain a 2004 Striped Bass Permit validated for
the Cape Fear River in order to sell any striped bass personally
harvested.
IV. SALE
TAGS:
No dealer may possess, buy, sell, or offer for sale striped bass taken without having affixed either a North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries issued tag affixed through the mouth and gill cover. In case of the striped bass imported from other states, a similar tag that is issued for striped bass in the state of origin must be affixed.
V. LANDING RESTRICTIONS:
Striped
bass taken from areas opened by this proclamation may be sold only to and
purchased by a dealer possessing a 2004
STRIPED BASS DEALER PERMIT validated for the Cape Fear Area.
VI. SEASON CLOSURE:
The
striped bass season for commercial fishing equipment for the area described in
Section I. above will close by rule at midnight, April 30, 2004 unless closed
by proclamation at an earlier date due to the harvest allocation being
met. Dealers will have two weeks after
the closing of the season to sell, offer for sale, transport, have in
possession unfrozen striped bass taken in this fishery.
VII. 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 Rules 15A NCAC 3H
.0103, 3I .0112. 3M .0201 and 3M .0202.
B. It
is unlawful to violate the 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 the harvest of striped bass in the Cape
Fear River by commercial gear within the 25,000 pound quota established by the
North Carolina Estuarine Striped Bass Fishery Management Plan.
D. Hook-and-line
fishing equipment is not commercial fishing operation in the striped bass
fishery and it is illegal to sell or purchase striped bass taken by
hook-and-line in accordance with N.C. Marine Fisheries Rule 15A NCAC 3M
.0201(b).
E. Holders of RCGL licenses or hook-and-line fishermen must follow the bag limit and harvest restrictions of the recreational fishery for striped bass.
F. All
striped bass taken during season closures and all undersized striped bass shall
be immediately returned to the waters taken, regardless of the condition of the
fish.
G.
Striped
Bass Dealer Permits validated for the Cape Fear Area are
available at no cost from all N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries License Offices.
H.
Dealers whose businesses are in Onslow,
Pender, New Hanover, Brunswick and other southern counties may obtain tags by
contacting the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries Office at 127
Cardinal Drive Extension, Wilmington, NC 28405 (Phone 910-395-3900 or
1-800-248-4536).
December
30, 2003
11:30
A.M.
FF-60-2003
/dlt