15a ncac 03j .0109       long haul and swipe net REQUIREMENTS

It shall be unlawful to use a net in a long haul or swipe net fishing operation:

(1)           without a floating buoy that shall be international orange, no less than five inches in diameter, and no less than 11 inches in length attached a minimum of every 100 yards along the cork line;

(2)           without a flag that shall be square in shape, international orange in color, and at least 24 inches by 24 inches in size flying in the rigging so as to be visible when approaching the vessel from any direction; and

(3)           in the Internal Coastal Waters south and west of a line beginning on the west shore of Pamlico Sound at Bluff Point at a point 35° 19.5333' N – 76° 09.3333' W; running southeasterly to Ocracoke Island to a point 35° 08.0000' N – 75° 55.0000' W; without escape panels as follows:

(a)           for long haul operations, two panels four feet deep and six feet long installed with the entire panel within 10 feet of the staff on the end of the bunt net from which the fish are being bailed, with panels in the water while fish are harvested;

(b)           for swipe net operations, two panels three feet deep and five feet long installed with the entire panel within 10 feet of the staff on the end of the bunt net from which the fish are being bailed, with panels in the water while fish are harvested;

(c)           the upper edge of one panel installed within 12 to 24 inches of the float line and the lower edge of the other panel installed within 12 to 24 inches of the lead line; and

(d)           panels constructed of unobstructed trawl rings with a minimum inside diameter of one and nine-sixteenth inches, with the rings fastened together at a maximum of four points per ring.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 113‑134; 113‑182; 143B-289.52;

Eff. January 1991;

Amended Eff. August 1, 2004; April 1, 1999;

Readopted Eff. March 15, 2023.