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Advisory board reviews extensive draft amendments to Town shellfish regulations; several items flagged for more work
Summary
The board reviewed proposed revisions to the Town of Nantucket shellfish regulations, discussing items including temperature buoy selection, catch-reporting, apprentice requirements, dredge specifications and inspection, green-crab authorizations, conch-tag allocations, and enforcement procedures; no final regulatory adoption occurred.
Members of the Nantucket Shellfish Advisory Board spent the bulk of the April 2025 meeting reviewing a large set of proposed amendments to the Town of Nantucket shellfish regulations. Natural Resources staff walked the board through edits and red-line changes that addressed terminology ("Select Board" and "shellfish constable"), license categories, harvest criteria, closures and red-flag locations, temperature-buoy sources, reporting requirements, dredge specifications, apprentice hours, and enforcement penalties.
Major discussion points included:
- Temperature reference and red-flag control: Staff proposed using a Weather Underground station (Hussey Street) or NOAA gauges for temperature thresholds; members flagged the choice for clarification and asked Natural Resources to confirm the precise data source before finalizing rules.
- Catch reporting and apps: The draft would require previous-season catch reports to be on file for commercial-license renewal; staff said they are evaluating apps that could link to state reporting to reduce duplicative reporting burdens. Members urged staff to pursue an app or simple digital form that can record recreational and commercial catch data in season.
- Apprenticeship and licenses: Draft language reduces the required apprentice active fishing days from 45 to 25 and requires apprentices and mentors to review a (to-be-developed) commercial scallop best-practices checklist. Members debated how to verify apprentice days (catch reports, photos, mentor attestations) and urged clearer wording to count days for helpers who are not yet licensed.
- Dredge specifications and study: Several harvesters told the board many boats have moved to smaller, 4-dredge configurations and new wing/bag geometries. Staff proposed a temporary path: altered dredges must be photographed, weighed and submitted for Natural Resources inspection prior to the season, and the department will conduct a dredge-impact study to inform permanent standards. Several harvesters requested an independent third-party study and said they want uniform, clear inspection criteria.
- Green crabs and pots: The draft references state requirements that a letter of authorization (LOA) be obtained for green crab harvesting by pot; harvesters said neighboring towns often do not enforce LOAs and questioned the town enforcing a state requirement more strictly than other communities.
- Conch (whelk) tags and allocation: Draft language caps the number of conch pot tags and proposes equal distribution between Nantucket and Madaket areas; harvesters asked the department to clarify geographic definitions for "Madaket Harbor" and how unused tag allocations would be managed when licensees are inactive.
- Enforcement and disposition: The revisions include fines and a process for confiscated catch: photograph and document unlawful catch and return it to the water where appropriate rather than retaining it. Members discussed procedures and transparency about confiscated catch disposition.
Board members and staff did not finalize the regulation package. Staff flagged a set of items for focused follow-up, agreed to collect clearer wording and definitions (harbor boundaries, dredge technical parameters, buoy/data sources, and procedures for transfers of tags and inactive permit holders), and scheduled further review at subsequent meetings (February 4 and February 18 dates were mentioned for additional working sessions).
