4 Va. Admin. Code § 20-530-31 - Bycatch fishery
A. It shall be
unlawful for any person to take, catch, possess, or land any American shad in
Virginia without first having obtained an American shad bycatch permit from the
Marine Resources Commission. Permits shall be issued only to Virginia
registered commercial fishermen meeting any of the following criteria:
1. The fisherman shall have held an American
shad bycatch permit in at least one of the three previous calendar years and
complied with all reporting requirements. In addition, that fisherman shall
have submitted an American shad bycatch permit application to the Marine
Resources Commission by March 15 for the 2013 fishing season, but no later than
February 5 in subsequent years.
2.
Any registered commercial fisherman not otherwise qualified under subdivision 1
of this subsection shall be eligible for an American shad bycatch permit if
that fisherman submits an American shad bycatch permit application and the
number of eligible American shad bycatch permitees as of March 15, 2013, or
February 5 in subsequent years, is less than 30.
3. Should the number of American shad bycatch
permit applications not exceed 30 as of March 15, 2013, or February 5 in
subsequent years, the available permits not issued per subdivision 1 of this
subsection may be issued until a maximum of 30 American shad bycatch permits
are issued.
4. Should the number of
American shad bycatch permit applications exceed 30 as of March 15, 2013, or
February 5 in subsequent years, a lottery will be held for available permits
not issued per subdivision 1 of this subsection.
B. The permittee shall keep a copy of that
permit in his possession while fishing for or selling American shad.
C. It shall be unlawful for any person to
possess aboard a vessel more than 10 American shad. When more than one
registered and permitted fisherman is fishing on the same vessel, it shall be
unlawful to possess more than 10 American shad aboard that vessel.
D. It shall be unlawful for any person to
possess aboard a vessel or land any American shad unless that person possesses
at least an equal number of fish of only the following food-grade species:
spot, croaker, bluefish, catfish, striped bass or white perch.
E. Possession of American shad by any person
permitted in accordance with this section shall be lawful only when those
American shad were harvested from the bycatch area. Possession of any American
shad harvested in Virginia waters that are outside of the bycatch area shall
constitute a violation of this regulation.
F. American shad harvested only as bycatch by
anchored gill nets and staked gill nets may be possessed or retained for sale
in accordance with the provisions of this regulation. It shall be unlawful for
any person to harvest, land, or possess any American shad taken by any
recreational gear or by any commercial gear, except anchored gill net or staked
gill net.
G Every fisherman permitted for the American shad bycatch fishery shall contact the commission's interactive voice response system, every Monday, to report the following for the preceding weekly period: name, registration number, number of fishing trips taken, water body fished, number of nets set, number of American shad caught, and number retained.
Notes
Statutory Authority
§ 28.2-201 of the Code of Virginia.
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