5 AAC 31.170 - Lawful gear for Registration Area D

In Registration Area D, shrimp may be taken only by pots, beam trawls, and otter trawls as follows:

(1) the maximum number of pots in the aggregate that may be operated from a registered shrimp fishing vessel operating in the waters of Yakutat Bay east of a line from the westernmost tip of Ocean Cape to the westernmost tip of Point Manby is 30 pots; a person or vessel registered to fish shrimp may not fish both shrimp pots and any other type of commercial, sport, or personal use pots at the same time;

(2) all shrimp pots left unattended in saltwater longer than a two-week period must have all bait and bait containers removed and all doors secured fully open;

(3) each shrimp pot operated in the waters of Yakutat Bay east of a line from the southernmost tip of Ocean Cape to the westernmost tip of Point Manby must be entirely covered with net webbing or rigid mesh; at least two opposing sides of the pot must have a webbed panel of a minimum stretch mesh of one and one-half inches; the net webbing must be hung to allow the passage of a wooden dowel that is three-quarter inch in diameter and 12 inches; upon insertion in the web or rigid mesh, the dowel must drop completely through by its own weight, without force, except that

(A) the mesh on the top and bottom of a pot utilizing a drawstring closure is not required to allow the passage of a wooden dowel that is three-quarter inch in diameter;

(B) the webbing used in the pot tunnel is not required to allow the passage of a wooden dowel that is three-quarter inch in diameter; and

(C) in addition to the requirement of (3) of this section, pots that do not have a definable side, including round pots, must have net webbing or rigid mesh panels covering a minimum of 50 percent of the vertical or near-vertical surfaces of the pots;

(4) during periods announced by emergency order, all shrimp trawl webbing in the cod end must be at least one and seven-eighths inch stretched measure, hung so the bars of the webbing are horizontal and perpendicular to the mouth of the trawl; during such periods the incidental cumulative catch of species of pandalid shrimp, other than sidestripe shrimp, may not exceed 10 percent, by weight, of all shrimp aboard the vessel.

Notes

5 AAC 31.170

Eff. 12/14/86, Register 100; am 4/30/91, Register 118; 4/15/95, Register 130; am 9/28/97, Register 143; am 5/8/98, Register 146

Authority:AS 16.05.251