12/14/2021 SHELLFISH COMMISSION Minutes

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COMMUNICATIONS AND CORRESPONDENCE OLD BUSINESS NEW BUSINESS 1. Shellfish Constable Report The Department is now in possession of a new boat. We'll have two and a half boats for this upcoming season. The oyster fishery has slowed down a bit, we've gone through approximately 60% of the stuff we have stocked for the whole season, on pace to run out right when the season ends. People are still fishing commercially. We need to address the sponge that is growing in Hamblin Pond and has been seen at the mouth of Little River. It thrives in high nitrogen areas and is very difficult to eradicate. It definitely needs to be dealt with. Ashley Fisher asked if there's a treatment, similar to how we treated milfoil, Mr. McElligatt said there's not any treatment that he's aware of. 2. Shellfish Rules and Regulations: Review of current rules and regulations for the purpose of updating same and forwarding to the Select Board for approval. Mr. McElligatt reviewed the rules and regulations with the Commission. A lot of the changes were incorporating State Law or Regulations into our bylaws. Recreation didn't change too much, some fees on the fine schedule went up a little bit. The biggest change for recreation is that the limit for bay scallops went from one bushel to one peck because we have very few bay scallops. The limits for Commercial quahogs went up. The idea was to give the incentive to keep the big stuff, keep the bottom from going stagnant, and put some more money in the pockets of commercial fishers. Wet storage in Town is prohibited. Blue Crab regulations are verbatim from the State. Alewife and Herring regulations have typically fallen under Shellfish. We spoke with Herring Agent, Drew McManus, and the biggest problem is people touching the ladders/herring runs. Now there will be some enforcement if people are touching the equipment. Shellfish license renewals will need to submit a catch report of what was harvested out of the water. Aquaculture had the most overhaul in changes. We had a lot of direct feedback from the aquaculturists in making these changes. Proof of residency, moratorium, compliance of laws, acreage limitations, production requirements, filing an annual report (forms updated), list of non -licensed workers of grants, tagging requirement for gear, inspections of containers and catch, Vibrio control plan, and annual inspections of grants, extension of grants, and research projects, were among the changes. Enforcement and penalties changed to include Conservation Agent.