FISH AND WILDLIFE CONSERVATION COMMISSION
RULE NOS.:RULE TITLES:
68B-45.002Definitions
68B-45.004Regulation and Prohibition of Certain Harvesting Gear
NOTICE OF CHANGE
Notice is hereby given that the following changes have been made to the proposed rule in accordance with subparagraph 120.54(3)(d)1., F.S., published in Vol. 47 No. 227, November 23, 2021 issue of the Florida Administrative Register.
68B-45.002 Definitions.
As used in this rule chapter:
(1) “Banana River TBRZ” means all waters of Sykes Creek south of State Road 528, and all waters of the Banana River south of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and north of Banana River Daybeacon 1 (28°08.512’ N Latitude), but excluding all waters of the Canaveral Barge Canal.
(2) “Big Bend TBRZ” means all Florida Waters that lie between a line 2.5 nautical miles inside of and parallel to the three nautical mile line, as depicted or described on NOAA nautical charts for coastal Florida waters, and a line 10 nautical miles inside of and parallel to the three nautical mile line extending from 29°56.046’ N Latitude in Franklin County to the Hernando-Pasco county line.
(1)(3) “Blue crab” means any crustacean of the species Callinectes sapidus, or any part thereof.
(2)(4) “Bycatch reduction device” or “BRD” means a rigid rectangular device or implement that forms the perimeter of the opening of a throat or entrance to a trap used to harvest blue crabs or peeler crabs and is intended to minimize bycatch of diamondback terrapins by limiting the size of the opening.
(5) “Charlotte Harbor TBRZ” means all inside waters of Charlotte and Lee counties east of Boca Grande Causeway and west of County Road 865 (San Carlos Boulevard), and includes Gasparilla Sound, Charlotte Harbor, Peace River, Pine Island Sound, Caloosahatchee River, and all connecting inside waters.
(6) through (12) renumbered as (3) through (9). No change.
(13) “Northeast Florida TBRZ” means all inside waters of Duval County north of State Road 105 and east of Interstate 95 and all inside waters of Nassau County east of Interstate 95 and south of the Florida-Georgia state line.
(14) through (20) renumbered as (10) through (16). No change.
(21) “Tampa Bay TBRZ” means all connecting inside waters of Tampa Bay bounded by County Road 682 in Pinellas County and State Road 684 in Manatee County.
(22) “TBRZ” means Terrapin Bycatch Reduction Zone.
(23) through (24) renumbered as (17) through (18). No change.
Rulemaking Authority Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. Law Implemented Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. History–New 12-14-93, Amended 6-1-94, 10-4-95, Formerly 46-45.002, Amended 7-1-03, 7-15-04, 5-26-05, 10-15-07, 3-1-22.
68B-45.004 Regulation and Prohibition of Certain Harvesting Gear.
(1) Except as provided in subsections (2), (3), (4), (5) and (6), below, the following types of gear shall be the only types of gear allowed for the harvest of blue crab in or from state waters:
(a) Traps meeting the following specifications:
1. through 5. No change.
6. Each throat (entrance) in any trap used to harvest blue crabs shall be horizontally oriented, i.e., the width of the opening where the throat meets the vertical wall of the trap and the opening of the throat at its farthest point from the vertical wall, inside the trap, is greater than the height of any such opening. No such throat shall extend farther than 6 inches into the inside of any trap, measured from the opening where the throat meets the vertical wall of the trap to the opening of the throat at its farthest point from the vertical wall, inside the trap. Beginning March 1, 2023 January 1, 2024, each throat or entrance in a trap used to harvest blue crabs, other than those used to harvest for commercial purposes, shall comply with terrapin bycatch reduction requirements as provided in subsection (8).
7. No change
(2)(a) through (d) No change.
(e) Beginning March 1, 2023 January 1, 2024, each entrance or throat in a trap used to harvest peeler crabs, other than those used to harvest for commercial purposes, shall comply with terrapin bycatch reduction requirements as provided in subsection (8).
(3) through (7) No change.
(8) Terrapin bycatch reduction requirements.
(a) Recreational harvesters. Beginning March 1, 2023January 1, 2024, each trap used to harvest blue crabs, other than those used to harvest for commercial purposes, must contain a bycatch reduction device that meets the specifications of paragraph (8)(b) (8)(c) installed in each entrance or throat.
(b) Commercial harvesters. Beginning January 1, 2024, each trap used to harvest blue crabs for commercial purposes from March 1 through October 31 each year within the following Terrapin Bycatch Reduction Zones must contain a bycatch reduction device that meets the specifications of paragraph (8)(c) installed in each entrance or throat: Banana River TBRZ, Big Bend TBRZ, Charlotte Harbor TBRZ, Northeast Florida TBRZ, and Tampa Bay TBRZ.
(b)(c) A trap shall be considered to meet the requirements of paragraph paragraphs (8)(a) or (8)(b) if each entrance or throat:
1. Contains a bycatch reduction device measuring no larger than 2 inches in height by 6 inches in width; or,
2. Is constructed completely of rigid wire such that the narrowest opening does not exceed 2 inches in height by 6 inches in width.
(9) through (11) no change.
Rulemaking Authority Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. Law Implemented Art. IV, Sec. 9, Fla. Const. History–New 12-14-93, Amended 6-1-94, 1-1-95, 10-4-95, 9-30-96, 1-1-98, 6-1-99, Formerly 46-45.004, Amended 2-28-02, 10-21-04, 3-1-05, 3-30-06, 9-21-06, 10-15-07, 1-26-11, 6-19-13, 1-1-20, 3-1-22.
