Town of Riverhead, NY Article IX Shellfish and Finfish

§ 293-41 Purpose.

The regulations for and control of the taking of shellfish and finfish from the waters and lands under waters in the Town of Riverhead are deemed necessary to protect the propagation of such shellfish and finfish, to preserve public peace and good order and to protect the public health and welfare. These regulations may be superseded by 6 NYCRR Part 44, Lobster and Crabs, of the Environmental Conservation Law.

§ 293-42 Restrictions on taking of shellfish and finfish; permits; fees.

A. No person shall take shellfish from Town waters unless such person is a resident/taxpayer, as defined herein, and has obtained a permit as prescribed by this Part 4.

B. Shellfish may be taken by a resident upon first applying for and obtaining a shellfish permit from the Town Clerk of the Town of Riverhead. There shall be no fee for such permit, and such permit shall expire on the last day of the year of the date of issue.

C. Shellfish may be taken by a temporary resident upon first applying for and obtaining a temporary resident permit from the Town Clerk of the Town of Riverhead. The fee for such permit shall be $15 for up to 15 days, $30 for up to 30 days, $60 for up to 60 days or $90 for up to 90 days. Permits shall expire on the date marked thereon.

D. Shellfish and finfish may be taken for commercial purposes by a resident/taxpayer over the age of 16 years upon first applying for and obtaining a commercial permit from the Town Clerk of the Town of Riverhead. The fee for such permit shall be $100 and shall expire on the 31st day of December in the year of issue. A resident under the age of 16 years may obtain a commercial permit with parental consent. Commercial resident/taxpayer shellfish permits shall only be issued to persons who have met eligibility requirements and who possess a current shellfish digger's permit from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation which indicates an address in the Town of Riverhead. The NYSDEC permit number(s) must be legibly indicated on each pot or trap intended for commercial use.

E. Shellfish may be taken without obtaining a permit hereunder by a guest of a permittee if accompanied by such permittee or by a child under the age of 16 years who is a member of the immediate family or a resident. A guest shall be deemed to be one person with the permittee for all purposes hereunder. This subsection shall not apply to a commercial permittee.

F. No person shall take shellfish of any kind from the waters of the Town of Riverhead by means of or with the aid of any device or implement commonly used in the art or practice of scuba diving or by means of or with the aid of any device designed to permit submergence beneath the surface of the water beyond normal human capacity.

G. There shall be no spearfishing of any kind within 500 feet of any public swimming area.

§ 293-42.1 Limitations specific to the East Creek.

[Added 1-17-2024 by L.L. No. 3-2024]

A. Access to the East Creek shall be seasonal and dependent upon advisement from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation on a yearly basis. The date range of allowable activity is subject to change and shall be reflected on the annual shellfish permit issued by the Town Clerk.

B. If the East Creek is open, permittees may only remove shellfish during the hours of 9:00 a.m. through 3:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, no weekends or holidays. Removal of shellfish on dates outside of the annual season as prescribed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation shall be prohibited.

C. The taking of shellfish shall be limited, on a daily basis, to a 1/2 bushel of individually combined shellfish, of which no more than 100 shall be hard clams.

D. Commercial removal of shellfish and/or finfish from the waters of the East Creek shall be prohibited.

E. Removal of shellfish from the waters of the East Creek by a non-Riverhead resident shall be prohibited.

§ 293-43 Permit applications.

A. Any person qualified as set forth may obtain a permit for taking shellfish and setting of nets and fykes from the waters or lands under the waters of the Town of Riverhead by making an application therefor and paying the fee as set forth above.

B. Such application shall be made in duplicate, in writing, in the form prescribed by the Town Clerk and shall state:

(1) The applicant's name.

(2) The applicant's residence with street and number, if any.

(3) The length of time of the applicant's residence in the Town of Riverhead.

(4) The applicant's age, sex, height and color of eyes and hair.

(5) The applicant's domicile outside the Town of Riverhead with street and number, if any.

(6) The applicant's real property owned in the Town of Riverhead with street and number, if any.

(7) Any permits issued hereunder shall become void if the holder ceases to be a resident or taxpayer.

[Amended 1-17-2024 by L.L. No. 3-2024]

C. Permits shall be in the form prescribed by the Town Clerk and shall contain the matters set forth upon the application. The original application shall be filed in the Town Clerk's office and a duplicate application in the office of the Riverhead Town Police and a duplicate application in the office of the Town Supervisor. Permits shall not be transferable, and any person engaged in taking shellfish from the waters and lands under waters of the Town of Riverhead shall be obligated to disclose his name, address and current permit number to any enforcement officer. Failure to do so shall be presumptive evidence that such person has not obtained such permit.

§ 293-44 Hard clams.

A. No clams shall be taken from Town waters between the hours of sunset and sunrise.

B. Hard clams measuring less than one inch in thickness shall be returned immediately to the waters of the place where taken.

C. No hard clams shall be taken from the bottom of the waters of the Town of Riverhead by any tool, instrument or device, except the common rake and tongs used and operated by hand alone.

D. No hard clams shall be uncovered or located by any mechanically operated or power-driven propeller or by any other mechanically operated or power-driven device or means, and no cover, whether plant life or bottom material, shall be removed by any such mechanically operated or power-driven propeller or by any such other mechanically operated or power-driven device or means.

§ 293-45 Soft clams.

A. No clams shall be taken from Town waters between the hours of sunset and sunrise.

B. Soft clams measuring less than 1 1/2 inches in length shall be returned immediately to the waters of the place where taken, except for propagation purposes in Town waters, and this may be done only after a written permit therefor has been granted by the Town Board upon written application therefor, subject to the supervision the Town Board or a committee thereof.

§ 293-46 Conch pots.

A. Conch pots shall not interfere with designated channels of navigation.

B. No commercial conch pots or other similar commercial pots shall be set in the waters of the Town of Riverhead without a commercial resident/taxpayer permit.

C. The placement of more than five pots by any single individual resident/taxpayer in the waters of the Town of Riverhead shall be considered the taking of conchs for commercial purposes.

§ 293-47 Crabs.

A. No person shall take female crabs bearing eggs visible thereon from Town waters nor offer for sale or possess the same within the Town of Riverhead.

B. Crab traps shall not interfere with designated channels of navigation.

C. No commercial crab traps or other similar commercial trap shall be set in the waters of the Town of Riverhead without a commercial resident/taxpayer permit.

D. The placement of more than five traps by any single individual resident/taxpayer in the waters of the Town of Riverhead shall be considered the taking of crabs for commercial purposes.

E. Crabs may be taken with a dredge, such dredge having an opening at the mouth not to exceed 36 inches in width, when towed by a boat operated by mechanical power or other means, provided that such dredge is brought aboard by hand power without the use of mechanical power.

F. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, no person shall take blue claw crabs less than five inches in length from point to point by any means from the Town waters.

G. A commercial permittee shall have no limit on the number of blue-claw crabs that may be taken per day. All other permittees may take up to 30 blue-claw crabs per day.

§ 293-48 Escallops.

A. Escallops may be taken with a dredge or scrape, having an opening at the mouth not to exceed 36 inches in width, when towed by a boat operated by mechanical power or other means, provided that such dredge or scrape is brought aboard by hand power without the use of a mechanical device, only from the bottom of the following described waters within the Town of Riverhead.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: A listing of such waters is available in the Town offices.

B. No escallops shall be taken from Town waters between the hours of sunset and sunrise.

C. Escallops may be taken from the Town waters of the Town of Riverhead during the period each year specified by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. The Town reserves the right to annually evaluate and modify the period during which escallops may be taken, provided that such dates are inclusive of the dates specified by the NYSDEC. Bay escallops shall not be taken on Sundays by use of a dredge or other device operated by power.

D. Only bay escallops having an annual growth line or measuring not less than 2 1/4 inches from the middle of the hinge to the middle of the bill may be taken. Bay escallops which do not meet the requirements of this subsection shall be returned immediately to the water where taken.

E. The provisions of this section shall not apply to private grants or assignments on deeded bay bottom lands in the Town of Riverhead which are used for aquaculture purposes and are permitted by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to use mechanical means for harvesting.

§ 293-49 Oysters.

A. No oysters shall be taken from the bottom of the waters of the Town of Riverhead by any dredge or mechanical device operated or powered either by sail or by an engine or motor.

B. No oysters shall be taken from the bottom or from any object affixed or appended to the bottom of the waters of the Town of Riverhead between the hours of sunset and sunrise.

§ 293-50 Shellfish predators.

Starfish, drills, drum fish and moon snails, when taken, shall not be returned alive to the waters of the Town of Riverhead.

§ 293-51 Shrimp.

No shrimp shall be taken from the waters of the Town of Riverhead by the use of any dredge, except by the light shrimp dredge and except by the minnow seine.

§ 293-52 Town Board authorized to amend equipment and limits.

A. The Town Board is hereby authorized, from time to time, to modify, amend or change the method or equipment used in taking shellfish whenever, in its discretion, it deems it necessary to protect shellfish propagation or if shellfish are in short supply or their existence in Town waters is endangered, upon giving 10 days' notice in the several newspapers in the Town of Riverhead.

B. The Town Board is hereby authorized, from time to time, to increase or decrease the limits on shellfish to be taken in one day whenever, in its discretion, it deems it necessary for the protection of shellfish in Town waters, upon giving 10 days' notice in the several newspapers in the Town of Riverhead.

§ 293-53 Limits for taking shellfish.

The limits for taking shellfish shall be as follows:

A. Escallops.

(1) Commercial resident/taxpayer permittees may take five bushels per day. Two or more such persons occupying the same boat while taking escallops may take, in the aggregate, not more than 10 bushels in one day.

(2) All other permittees may take individually one bushel per day.

B. All other shellfish as defined herein, except escallops.

(1) Commercial residential/taxpayer permittees: limit of five bushels.

(2) All other permittees may take individually 1/2 bushel of combined shellfish, of which no more than 100 may be hard clams.

C. Whenever the total catch on board a vessel exceeds the authorized limit, all persons on board shall be deemed in violation.

§ 293-54 Enforcement.

This Part 4 shall be enforced by any duly constituted law enforcement agency having jurisdiction within the Town of Riverhead.