A.
Implements or devices employed.
(1)
No implement or device shall be used in taking hard
clams except:
(a)
Hand-operated tongs having teeth in the heads
thereof spaced no less than one inch apart, measured in the clear
and having a distance of not less than 3/4 inch between the bars of
the basket.
(b)
Hand-operated rakes having teeth spaced not
less than one inch apart, measured in the clear.
(c)
Baskets attached to such hand-operated rakes
having bars not less than 7/8 of an inch apart, measured in the clear.
(2)
No wire, netting or other foreign matter shall be
used between the teeth or bows of such tongs or rakes.
B.
Size.
(1)
No hard clams measuring less than one inch in thickness,
measured at right angles to the shell hinge, shall be taken from Town-owned
land. All clams taken which shall not be at least one inch in thickness
shall be returned to said lands from which taken and left there. No
person shall accumulate or possess more than one bushel of bay cull
at any time.
(2)
Hard clams which are not permitted to be taken pursuant
to this subsection may compose not to exceed 3% per container of the
total catch when unavoidably taken. Said 3% may be determined by the
measurement of any container of soft clams taken from the catch.
C.
(Reserved)
A.
Implements or devices employed. Soft-shelled clams
may be taken only by implements known as shovels, forks, hoes and
tongs, except that the propeller of a boat may be used for churning
said clams on any bar or shoreline that does not fall dry at the ordinary
tide.
B.
Size.
(1)
No soft clam less than 1 1/2 inches in length,
as measured on the longest dimension, shall be possessed or taken
from Town-owned land. All soft clams taken which shall be less than
1 1/2 inches in length shall be immediately returned to said
lands from which taken and left there.
(2)
Soft clams which are not permitted to be taken pursuant
to this subsection may compose not to exceed 3% per container of the
total catch when unavoidably taken. Such 3% may be determined by the
measurement of any container of soft clams taken from the catch.
C.
All Town-owned lands from which soft-shelled clams
are taken by use of shovels, forks, hoes or tongs shall be restored
to their original condition immediately following the taking of such
shellfish. This provision shall not apply to soft-shell clams taken
by churning with the propeller of a boat.
A.
Taking prohibited during certain period. Bay scallops
shall not be taken from Town-owned lands between April 1 and the Sunday
before the first Monday in November, both inclusive, of each year.
Should the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
change the harvest dates in New York State waters, the Town's harvesting
dates will change to match the state's posted dates.
[Amended 8-12-2014 by L.L. No. 17-2014, effective 8-26-2014]
B.
Size. Only bay scallops 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 or possessed. All bay
scallops which may not be taken or possessed pursuant to this subsection
shall immediately be returned alive to the water. However, such undersized
bay scallops may compose not to exceed 2% of the total catch when
unavoidably taken. Such 2% may be determined by the measurement of
any bushel of bay scallops taken from the catch.
C.
Limitation on amount of scallops taken. No person
shall take or possess in excess of 10 bushels of scallops per day,
and where two or more persons are aboard the same boat, no more than
20 bushels of scallops in the aggregate may be taken or possessed
per day.
A.
Taking prohibited during certain period. Oysters,
oyster spat or cultch shall not be taken from Town-owned land between
May 1 and August 31, both inclusive, of each year. Oysters, oyster
spat or cultch taken from Town-owned land during this period shall
be returned to said land or water from which taken and left there.
No person shall accumulate or possess more than one bushel of bay
cull at any time.
B.
Size. No oysters under the size of five inches shall
be taken from Town-owned land. The length of the oyster added to its
width shall determine the size thereof. All oysters taken or possessed
which are not five inches in size shall immediately be returned to
said lands from which taken and left there.
C.
No person, who holds a valid Town of Brookhaven commercial shellfish permit, shall have in their possession nor harvest in any given day, more than 2,000 oysters at any one time. In cases where multiple permit holders are working from the same boat, the total number of oysters which may be possessed or stored on the boat shall be limited to 4,000 per day. This section shall not apply to holders of a valid commercial buyers permit who purchase oysters from approved dockside locations nor shall it apply to Town of Brookhaven residents who are limited under § 57-5A to the taking of no more than one-half bushel of shellfish per day.
[Added 3-5-1996 by L.L. No. 6-1996,
effective 3-8-1996]
[Added 9-18-2023 by L.L. No. 7-2023, effective 10-2-2023]
A.
Razor clams may be taken only by implements known as shovels, forks,
hoes and tongs, except that the propeller of an outboard may be used
for churning said clams on any bar or shoreline that does not fall
dry at the ordinary tide.
B.
No clearing or churning of seagrasses shall occur. A ten-foot buffer
must be maintained from all submerged seagrass beds.
C.
A fifty-foot buffer shall be maintained around all aquaculture leases.
D.
When hand digging or churning in areas adjacent to tidal banks, edges
or beach slopes vegetated with spartina grass communities (alterniflora,
patens), harvesting may not occur closer than four lineal feet at
any point to the seaward edge of primary emergent grass commonly known
as "cordgrass" (Spartina alterniflora). Distance shall be measured
from the base of the vertical bank, or edge or seaward side of a vegetated
slope.
E.
The introduction into the wetlands or waterways, by any means, of
any suspended solids, sediments, fuels, solvents, lubricants, epoxy
coatings, paints, or any other environmentally deleterious materials,
either directly or indirectly, because of the action permitted herein,
is strictly prohibited.
F.
There shall be no unreasonable interference with the navigation of
the waterway by the work authorized by this permit. Churning closer
than 10 linear feet to the edge of any navigable channel or passage
is prohibited.
G.
Churning shall only occur from October 1 through April 15 (inclusive).
H.
Churning shall be restricted to those areas in the vicinity of Moriches
Inlet and New Inlet, as depicted in 57 Attachment 3, Exhibits C-1
and C-2.
I.
Bycatch, i.e., hard clams, or oysters, caught during churning, shall
be returned to the area from which it is removed.
J.
The outboard motor used for churning shall be limited to a maximum
of 20 hp.
K.
The floating frame that is used to house the outboard engine shall
be the only acceptable mounting device when churning. The frame shall
be designed to keep the propeller above underlying bay bottom during
operation.
L.
Only one floating frame that is used to house the outboard engine
is allowed per boat, or permit, unless two rigs are set up for the
two ends of the tidal cycle and used alternately.
M.
A valid permit from the New York State Department of Environmental
Conservation (shellfish digger permit) for the taking of shellfish
shall be onboard the transport vessel at all times when churning or
regular shellfishing activity is occurring.
N.
A valid permit from the Town of Brookhaven for the taking of shellfish
shall be onboard the transport vessel at all times when churning or
regular shellfishing activity is occurring.
O.
The transport vessel shall have a valid New York State registration.
P.
Two deckhand/helpers are to be allowed per permit. Nonresident helpers/deckhands
are prohibited.
Q.
It is up to the permittee to confirm and satisfy any other state
or municipal permitting requirements for a helper on board the vessel.
R.
The Department of Environmental Protection may impose additional
conditions/limitations based on evaluation of the razor clam population.