322 CMR, § 12.04 - Fixed Gear Seasonal Closures
(1)
Gillnet Closure to Protect Right Whales. It shall be
unlawful for any commercial fisher to fish, set, maintain, or abandon any sink
gillnets within the waters under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth during
the period of January 1st through May 15
th. This closure may be extended past May
15th or rescinded after April
30th based on the presence or absence of right
whales, in accordance with the process set forth at
322
CMR 12.04(4).
(2)
Commercial Trap Gear Closure
to Protect Right Whales. It shall be unlawful for any commercial
fisher to fish, set, maintain, or abandon any trap gear in any waters under the
jurisdiction of the Commonwealth from February 1st
through May 15th. This closure may be extended past
May 15th or rescinded after April
30th based on the presence or absence of right
whales, in accordance with the process set forth at
322
CMR 12.04(4).
Exception: This shall not apply to those waters under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth within Lobster Management Area 2, as defined at 322 CMR 6.33(2)(e): LCMA 2.
(3)
Recreational Lobster and Crab Trap Closure to Protect Right
Whales. It shall be unlawful for any recreational fisher to fish,
set, maintain, or abandon any buoyed lobster and crab trap gear in any waters
under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth during the period of November
1st through May 15th.
This closure may be extended past May 15th or
rescinded after April 30th based on the presence or
absence of right whales, in accordance with the process set forth at
322
CMR 12.04(4).
Exception: This shall not apply to any buoyless recreational lobster and crab trap gear fished from the shoreline.
(4)
Notice of Declaration to Amend Timing of Fixed Gear Seasonal
Closures. The Director, through Notice of Declaration, may adjust
the duration of the fixed gear seasonal closures at
322
CMR 12.04, as reasonably necessary to prevent
the entanglements of the North Atlantic right whale in fixed fishing gear based
on the Director's assessment of the documented presence of the North Atlantic
right whale in Massachusetts waters. The Director shall amend the timing of
these fixed gear seasonal closures by filing the Notice of Declaration with the
Secretary of State for publication in the Massachusetts Register, publishing
the Notice of Declaration on the Division's Legal Notice web page, and
distributing the Notice of Declaration via the Division's
e-mail list serve.
Notes
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
(1) Gillnet Closure to Protect Right Whales. It shall be unlawful for any commercial fisher to fish , set, maintain, or abandon any sink gillnets within the waters under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth during the period of January 1st through May 15th. This closure may be extended past May 15th or rescinded after April 30th based on the presence or absence of right whales, in accordance with the process set forth at 322 CMR 12.04(4).
(2) Commercial Trap Gear Closure to Protect Right Whales. It shall be unlawful for any commercial fisher to fish , set, maintain, or abandon any trap gear in any waters under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth from February 1st through May 15th. This closure may be extended past May 15th or rescinded after April 30th based on the presence or absence of right whales, in accordance with the process set forth at 322 CMR 12.04(4).
Exception: This shall not apply to those waters under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth within Lobster Management Area 2, as defined at 322 CMR 6.33(2)(e): LCMA 2.
(3) Recreational Lobster and Crab Trap Closure to Protect Right Whales. It shall be unlawful for any recreational fisher to fish , set, maintain, or abandon any buoyed lobster and crab trap gear in any waters under the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth during the period of November 1st through May 15th. This closure may be extended past May 15th or rescinded after April 30th based on the presence or absence of right whales, in accordance with the process set forth at 322 CMR 12.04(4).
Exception: This shall not apply to any buoyless recreational lobster and crab
(4) Notice of Declaration to Amend Timing of Fixed Gear Seasonal Closures. The Director, through Notice of Declaration, may adjust the duration of the fixed gear seasonal closures at 322 CMR 12.04, as reasonably necessary to prevent the entanglements of the North Atlantic right whale in fixed fishing gear based on the Director's assessment of the documented presence of the North Atlantic right whale in Massachusetts waters. The Director shall amend the timing of these fixed gear seasonal closures by filing the Notice of Declaration with the Secretary of State for publication in the Massachusetts Register, publishing the Notice of Declaration on the Division's Legal Notice web page, and distributing the Notice of Declaration via the Division's e-mail list serve.