12. Place where comments are to be submitted and deadline for submission:
Written comments may be submitted at the public hearings, by regular mail, fax or email to:
Meredith Penthorn
Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707
608-316-0080
Section 1 NR 25.02 (9m) is created to read:
NR. 25.02 (9m) “Commercial fishing license” means, for the purposes of s. 29.503 (2)(b), Stats., those licenses issued pursuant to 29.519, 29.523, 29.526, 29.529, 29.531, 29.533, and 29.535, Stats. Section 2 NR 25.02 (66) is amended to read:
NR 25.02 (66) “Trawl” means a large conical bag of netting to which are often attached wings of netting, which is towed in the water and weighted such that its sweep line maintains contact with the bottom throughout the drag, and captures fish by scooping rather than encircling them. The mouth of the bag is normally kept open laterally by 2 large boards, one on each side so rigged that they serve to spread the entire net, and these boards are secured to towing lines running to the vessel or vessels engaged in towing the net through the water.
Section 3 NR 25.05 (4) is amended to read:
NR 25.05 (4) Ice fishing. Commercial fishing through the ice in Green Bay and Lake Michigan is prohibited after March 1530 during each license year.
Section 4 NR 25.09 (2)(d) 2. b. is amended to read:
NR 25.09 (2)(d) 2. b. Only for taking smelt as provided in s. NR 25.06 (2) (c) except chubs may be harvested during the trawling season for smelt, subject to s. NR 25.07 (2) (a). Section 5 NR 25.09 (2)(d) 2. d. and e. are created to read:
NR 25.09 (2)(d) 2. d. Until October 31, 2025, whitefish may be taken by trawling from December 1 to August 31 from one hour before sunrise to one hour before sunset. Trawls shall consist of a head rope height not greater than 45 meters. The wing mesh shall not be less than 4.5 inches stretch measure. The beginning of the trawl bag where it attaches to the wing shall not be less than 2 inches stretch measure and not greater than 4.5 inches stretch measure and shall have a fishing circle not greater than 250 meshes. The cod end of the trawl bag shall not be less than 4.5 inches stretch measure and shall begin with a fishing circle not greater than 80 meshes. The net shall be composed of twine material capable of remaining open under tension. No trawl may be deployed for longer than one hour per drag, measured from the time the trawl door enters the water until the time the trawl door leaves the water upon retrieval.
e. Any person taking whitefish using a trawl under this subdivision shall submit commercial fishing reports on whitefish subject to the requirements in s. NR 25.13 (2), and on incidental harvest subject to the requirements in s. NR 25.13 (2) (g). Section 6 NR 25.09 (2m) is created to read:
NR 25.09 (2m) Video surveillance. A licensee taking whitefish using a trawl under sub. (2) (d) 2. shall capture a video record of the on-board activity on any vessel engaged in trawling for whitefish as provided in this subsection. The licensee shall comply with all the video surveillance system requirements in this subsection unless the licensee notifies the department of a system malfunction as described in subd. 3. The video record shall be made by using a video surveillance system that complies with all of the following requirements:
(a)
1. The system shall consist of not fewer than two cameras capable of recording video in color and infrared, at not less than 5 frames per second and 470 TV lines resolution. The licensee shall position one camera to clearly capture the area of the vessel in which fish are emptied from the bag of the trawl net, and the licensee shall position one camera to clearly capture the area of the vessel where incidentally caught fish are measured before being returned to the water. Placement of the cameras is subject to all of the following:
a. The licensee shall place a measuring board with visible measuring units in inches near the bycatch chute, arranged so that each incidentally caught fish passes across the measuring board in a manner allowing determination of species and length in view of the camera prior to the fish’s return to the water.
b. Upon direction from the department, the licensee shall reposition any of the cameras if the activities identified in this paragraph are not visible or are unclear in any video record generated under this section after being viewed by the department under par. (c).
2. The video record generated by the cameras described in subd. 1. shall be recorded on a hard drive that has memory capacity of not less than 1 terabyte and is capable of retaining not less than 30 days of video records generated as required under par. (b), with each frame of the video record stamped with the date and time of capture.
3. The video recording system shall be equipped with an audible alarm warning that indicates system malfunction. If a system malfunction occurs, the licensee shall immediately cease trawling and shall contact the department within two hours of returning to the dock. Upon restoration of system functionality, the licensee shall notify the department and shall resume using the system.
(b) The licensee shall activate the video recording system under par. (a) upon engine ignition each time a vessel is operated for the purpose of taking whitefish with a trawl and shall provide that the video recording system remains in operation until the vessel returns to its dock and the engine is turned off.
(c) The licensee shall maintain all video records captured under this subsection for 30 days following their recording. The licensee shall provide the video record to the department upon request through a wireless internet transmission or with a removable storage device.
Section 7 NR 25.09 (5) (intro.) is renumbered NR 25.09 (5) (a) (intro.) and is amended to read:
NR 25.09 (5) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), whenever any gill netsnet lift, encircling netsnet lift or trawls catchtrawl drag catches illegal fish of any species in an amount equal to 10% or more by weight or numbers of the total legal catch, those nets the licensee shall be immediately removedremove the net from the water, and may not be reset, placed, replaced,place, replace, recast or operatedoperate the net during that same day unless:
Section 8 NR 25.09 (5) (a) and (b) are renumbered NR 25.09 (5) (a) 1. and 2.
Section 9 NR 25.09 (5) (bm) is created to read:
NR 25.09 (5) (bm) When trawling for whitefish from August 1 to 31 pursuant to s. NR 25.09 (2) (d) 2. d., all of the following requirements apply: 1.
When a single trawl drag catches illegal fish of any species in an amount equal to 10% or more by weight or numbers of the total legal catch, the licensee shall immediately remove the trawl from the water, and may not reset, replace, recast, or operate any trawl during the same day unless the licensee moves and operates all parts of the trawl a distance of at least 3 miles from that site or to a water depth where no part of the trawl operates within 30 feet (5 fathoms) in depth of the water depth at which the catch of illegal fish was made.2.
Notwithstanding the requirement in subd. 1, when a single trawling vessel catches a daily average of at least 2 lake sturgeon, or a daily average of 10 to 49.9% by weight of incidental catch of illegal fish and any whitefish returned to the water, out of the dressed whitefish reported harvested by weight in a single week from Sunday to Saturday, the licensee may not reset, replace, recast, or operate any trawl during the following week unless the licensee moves and operates all parts of the trawl a distance of at least 6 miles from that site. 3.
Notwithstanding the requirements in subds. 1 or 2., when a single trawling vessel catches 3 or more lake sturgeon or catches more than 50% by weight of incidental catch of illegal fish and any whitefish returned to the water out of the dressed whitefish reported harvested by weight in a single day, the licensee shall cease all trawling activities for the following 3 days. 4.
The following formula shall be used to determine the percentage of incidental catch of illegal fish out of the reported whitefish harvest for the purposes of subds. 1. to 3.: [(number of whitefish x 1.37) + (number of lake trout and other incidentally caught species x 5.86) / reported whitefish harvest in pounds] x 100. Note: Weights are determined for incidental catch based on average fish weights.
Section 10. Effective Date. This rule takes effect on May 1, 2020.
Section 11. Board adoption. This rule was approved and adopted by the State of Wisconsin Natural Resources Board on December 11, 2019.
