Fla. Admin. Code Ann. R. 68B-31.006 - Allowable Gear and Harvest Methods; Prohibited Gear; Turtle Excluder Devices, Exceptions; Bycatch Reduction Devices

(1) Recreational Harvesters -

(a) Except as provided in paragraph 68B-31.0061(1)(b), F.A.C., for a portion of Volusia County, or except as provided in paragraph 68B-31.0064(1)(b), F.A.C., for a portion of the Big Bend Region, a recreational harvester may harvest or attempt to harvest shrimp in or from Florida Waters only by or with the use of the following gear:

1. Landing or dip net with an opening no larger than 96 inches around the perimeter.

2. Cast net with a stretched length (the distance from the horn at the center of the net, with the net gathered and pulled taut, to the lead line) no greater than 14 feet.

3. Push net. A push net may only be pushed or dragged across the bottom by a person wading.

4. Frame net.

a. Except as provided in paragraph 68B-31.0062(1)(b), F.A.C., for Miami-Dade County, one frame net with an opening no larger than 16 feet around the perimeter.

b. A frame net may only be deployed from a vessel or from a structure other than an operational bridge or causeway or catwalk attached to such bridge or causeway.

5. Shrimp traps not exceeding 36 inches in length, 24 inches in width, and 12 inches in height, or a volume of 6 cubic feet. A shrimp trap may not contain external or unattached wings, weirs or other devices intended to funnel shrimp to the trap.

a. A shrimp trap meeting these specifications, regardless of configuration, shall not be considered a pound net.

b. The user's name and address must be securely affixed to each shrimp trap.

c. A person may not use more than four shrimp traps at any one time.

d. A shrimp trap on or attached to beaches, causeways, seawalls, bridges, or any other structures open for use by the public must be attended at all times by the recreational harvester whose name is affixed to the trap.

6. Beach or haul seine with a mesh area no larger than 500 square feet.

(b) Baiting - A recreational harvester may use a cast net in conjunction with nonmetal poles to bait shrimp if such use is in compliance with the following restrictions:

1. A person may not set more than five poles at any one time.

2. Each pole may not exceed one inch in diameter.

3. Poles must be driven into the bottom, set no closer than 10 yards apart, and the distance between the first and last pole shall not exceed 50 yards.

4. Poles may only be set, fished, and retrieved during daylight hours. All poles must be removed each day by 1/2 hour after official sunset.

5. Each pole must be marked with white reflective tape.

6. No pole shall be set within 50 yards of any dock, pier, public boat landing or ramp, seawall, jetty, or bridge.

7. Poles shall be tended at all times. The term "tended" means that the harvester is within 100 yards of the nearest pole at all times.

(c) A recreational harvester may not harvest or attempt to harvest shrimp with gear not expressly permitted in subsection (1).

(2) Commercial Harvesters -

(a) Mesh Area for Trawls. No person shall use in nearshore and inshore Florida Waters any trawl with a net or bag containing more than 500 square feet of mesh area. The mesh area of a trawl shall be calculated as a cone using the maximum circumference of the net mouth to derive the radius, and the maximum length of the net with meshes open from the center of the headrope at the net mouth to the tail end of the net to derive the slant height.

(b) Live Bait Shrimp Producers.

1. Except as provided in Rule 68B-31.0061, F.A.C., for the Northeast Region, or as provided in paragraph 68B-31.0064(4)(a), F.A.C., for a portion of the Big Bend Region, a live bait shrimp producer may harvest or attempt to harvest shrimp in or from Florida Waters only by or with the use of a roller frame trawl meeting the following specifications:

a. Neither the upper nor lower horizontal beam on a roller frame trawl may be greater than 16 feet in length.

b. The vertical bars shielding the trawl opening may not be spaced more than 3 inches apart.

c. No more than two such trawls, unconnected, may be towed by a single vessel at any time.

d. No such trawl shall be larger in mesh area than specified by paragraph (2)(a).

2. Mesh size requirements. Any trawl used by a live bait shrimp producer must meet the following mesh size requirements:

a. In the body of the net, the mesh size may not be less than 5/8 inch bar measurement.

b. In the cod end, the mesh size may not be less than 1/2 inch bar measurement.

3. A live bait shrimp producer may not harvest or attempt to harvest shrimp with gear or methods that are not expressly permitted in paragraph (2)(b), or Rules 68B-31.0061 or 68B-31.0064, F.A.C.

(c) Food Shrimp Producers. A food shrimp producer may harvest or attempt to harvest shrimp in or from Florida Waters only by or with the use of the gear or methods specified herein and as specified in Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C.

1. Trawls:

a. A food shrimp producer may use trawls for the directed harvest of shrimp in all Florida Waters seaward of the nearshore and inshore Florida Waters of the Northeast Region, Southeast Region, Southwest Region, and Northwest Region.

b. A food shrimp producer harvesting shrimp in or on Florida Waters seaward of nearshore and inshore Florida Waters where the use of otter trawls is allowed may use a single try net meeting the specifications of subparagraph (2)(c)5.

2. Brine box. A food shrimp producer may not use a brine box to separate shrimp from other species. This does not prohibit a food shrimp producer from using a brine box to rapidly freeze shrimp that have been manually separated from bycatch and bagged in preparation for placement in cold storage aboard a vessel. The possession of any species other than shrimp within a brine box aboard a vessel shall constitute a violation of this subparagraph.

3. Roller Frame Trawl Specifications. In areas where a food shrimp producer is allowed to use a roller frame trawl on a regional basis pursuant to Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C., such roller frame trawl must meet the following specifications:

a. Neither the upper nor lower horizontal beam on a roller frame trawl may be greater than 16 feet in length.

b. The vertical bars shielding the trawl opening may not be spaced more than 3 inches apart.

c. No such trawl shall be larger in mesh area than specified by paragraph (2)(a).

d. Such trawl must meet applicable regional mesh size requirements established in Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C.

4. Otter Trawl Specifications. In areas where a food shrimp producer is allowed to use an otter trawl on a regional basis pursuant to Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C., such otter trawl must meet the following specificiations:

a. The perimeter around the leading edge of the net may not exceed 66 feet.

b. No such trawl shall be larger in mesh area than specified by paragraph (2)(a).

c. Such trawl must meet applicable regional mesh size requirements established in Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C.

d. Each otter trawl must have a TED installed meeting the requirements of subsection (3).

e. A person may not use any otter trawl, or possess any otter trawl that is rigged for fishing, that does not have a bycatch reduction device installed meeting the requirements of subsection (4).

5. Try Net Specifications. In areas where a food shrimp producer is allowed to use a try net, such try net must meet the following specifications:

a. Within nearshore and inshore Florida Waters where a food shrimp producer is allowed to use a try net on a regional basis pursuant to Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C., such try net must meet the following specifications:

(I) The headrope may not be greater than 10 feet in length.

(II) The perimeter around the leading edge of the net may not be greater than 30 feet.

(III) No such try net shall be larger in mesh area than specified by paragraph (2)(a).

(IV) Such try net must meet applicable regional mesh size requirements established in Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C.

b. In or on Florida Waters seaward of nearshore and inshore Florida Waters, a try net must meet the following specifications:

(I) The headrope may not be greater than 20 feet in length.

(II) The perimeter around the leading edge of the net may not be greater than 60 feet.

(III) Such try net must meet applicable regional mesh size requirements established in Rules 68B-31.0061 through 68B-31.0065, F.A.C.

6. A food shrimp producer may not harvest or attempt to harvest shrimp with gear or methods that are not expressly permitted in paragraph (2)(c).

(3) Turtle Excluder Devices -

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b):

1. No person may use in or on Florida Waters any trawl that does not have a TED installed therein.

2. A person may not possess aboard any vessel in or on Florida Waters any trawl rigged for fishing that does not have a TED installed therein.

(b) The requirements in paragraph (a) do not apply to the following gear:

1. A single try net meeting the requirements of subparagraph 68B-31.006(2)(c) 5., F.A.C.

2. A roller frame trawl meeting the specifications of subparagraph 68B-31.006(2)(b) 1., F.A.C. or subparagraph 68B-31.006(2)(c) 3., F.A.C.

3. A trawl being used as part of a public or private experimentation pursuant to authorization issued by the Assistant Administrator, Southeast Region, NOAA Fisheries, as provided in 50 C.F.R. § 223.207(e)(2), as of May 1, 2024. Written authorization shall be maintained aboard the vessel with such a trawl at all times.

4. A trawl authorized for use in the directed harvest of calico scallops by Rule 68B-53.006, F.A.C.

(c) A person may not rig or alter a TED installed in any trawl in any manner so as to render the TED nonfunctioning or ineffective in excluding sea turtles from the trawl.

(4) Bycatch Reduction Devices - In or on Florida Waters where the use of a bycatch reduction device (BRD) is required pursuant to this chapter, a person may not use any trawl or possess any trawl that is rigged for fishing aboard any vessel if such trawl does not have a BRD meeting the requirements of this subsection installed therein.

(a) A person may not rig or alter a BRD installed in any trawl in any manner so as to render the BRD nonfunctioning or ineffective in excluding species other than shrimp from the trawl.

(b) A person may only use one of the following types of BRDs to comply with the requirements of this subsection:

1. BRDs currently certified or currently provisionally certified by NOAA Fisheries as defined in 50 C.F.R. §622 Appendix D, as of May 1, 2024, and pursuant to 50 C.F.R. § 622.53, as of May 1, 2024, and 50 C.F.R. § 622.207, as of May 1, 2024.

2. The Florida Finfish Excluder, as described in this subparagraph, meets the BRD requirements of this subsection only in or on nearshore and inshore Florida Waters. The Florida Finfish Excluder device shall consist of at least one rigid exit opening frame made of no smaller than 1/4-inch steel or aluminum rod sewn into each trawl. Each exit opening frame shall be at least 12 inches in length and have an apex of three bars pointing forward to orient the exit opening in the direction of the mouth of the trawl. The opening thus created shall be in the shape of a parallelogram or oval and no smaller than 36 square inches in area and 5 inches across the opening in the shortest dimension. The opening formed by each frame shall be no further forward in the cod end than 70% of the distance between the draw string (tie-off rings) and the beginning of the tail bag (excluding any extension). The frame shall be installed on the top side of the cod end, no more than 15 meshes to the side of the centerline.

Notes

Fla. Admin. Code Ann. R. 68B-31.006

Rulemaking Authority Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. Law Implemented Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const.

New 1-1-92, Amended 3-16-93, 11-29-93, 10-3-94, 6-3-96, 6-1-99, Formerly 46-31.006, Amended 12-2-99, 3-1-05, Amended by Florida Register Volume 45, Number 233, December 3, 2019 effective 12/15/2019, Amended by Florida Register Volume 48, Number 066, April 5, 2022 effective 5/1/2022, Amended by Florida Register Volume 50, Number 173, September 4, 2024 effective 9/19/2024.

New 1-1-92, Amended 3-16-93, 11-29-93, 10-3-94, 6-3-96, 6-1-99, Formerly 46-31.006, Amended 12-2-99, 3-1-05, 12-15-19, 5-1-22.