BILL NUMBER: S9304
SPONSOR: SKOUFIS
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
prohibiting the use of trawling, gill nets, and trammel nets except for
scientific purposes; and to repeal provisions of such law relating ther-
eto
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to ban bottom trawling, gill netting, and
trammel netting, except in circumstances relating to scientific
research.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Amends subdivision 1 of section 11-1321 of the environmental
conservation law by adding trawls, gill nets, and trammel nets to the
list of banned activities for taking fish.
Section 2: Amends section 11-1503 of the environmental conservation law
by banning trawls and trammel nets from being operated.
Section 3: Amends section 13-0341 of the environmental conservation law
by defining a trawl; establishing waters in which a trawl is prohibited
from being operated; and establishes an exception for the operation of
trawls for the purposes of scientific research.
Section 4: Amends subdivisions 3, 4, 5, and 6 of section 11-1521 of the
environmental conservation law by prohibiting trawls as a method to take
certain species of fish; and, removes subdivisions 4 and 5.
Section 5: Amends subdivision 1, paragraph c of subdivision 2, and para-
graph a of subdivision 7 of section 13-0329 of the environmental conser-
vation law by removing language relating to the usage and prohibition of
trawls.
Section 6: Repeals subdivision 10 of section 13-0329 of the environ-
mental conservation law.
Section 7: Amends paragraph b of subdivision 1 of section 13-0339 of the
environmental conservation law by removing language related to gill
nets.
Section 8: Amends subdivisions 15, 16, and 19 of section 13-0343 of the
environmental conservation law by removing paragraph b of subdivision
15; establishing the prohibition of trawls, gill nets, and trammel nets
in any waters outlined by section 13-0341 or other waters within one-
half mile thereof, except for exceptions relating to scientific
research; and, removes parts of paragraph a and all of paragraphs b, c,
d, e, and f of subdivision 19, and replaces it with language prohibiting
the possession of gill and trammel nets.
Section 9: Amends subdivision 2 of section 13-0347 by removing language
related to gill nets and trawl nets.
Section 10: Sets the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Bottom trawling, gill netting, and trammel netting are methods of fish-
ing that yield large numbers of marine life. The nature of bottom trawl-
ing involves the use of large nets up to 300 feet wide, which are
dragged along the sea floor. Gill netting is one layer of netting that
often results in marine life becoming tangled at their gills, fins, and
other parts. Trammel netting is similar to gill netting, but it instead
uses three layers of netting, causing lower selectivity for marine life.
Each one of these methods of fishing causes detrimental problems to the
health of New York's aquatic ecosystem, including but not limited to
destroying the seafloor where species reside, overfishing, bycatch of
non-target species such as various mammals, and the consequent deaths of
bycatch.
Currently, New York has hundreds of fisheries that use these methods of
fishing. These fisheries are classified in any one of three categories
relating to the potential biological removal level (PBR). PBR refers to
the maximum amount of stock that can be removed from a population that
still allows a particular species to reach sustainable numbers for its
population. The higher the PBR level, the more frequently fisheries kill
or injure these species. Most fisheries in the Northeast region are in
Categories I and II, meaning that they are reaching up to more than
fifty percent of the PBR level.
By banning bottom trawling, gill netting, and trammel netting, New York
will be protecting its marine environment, including the seafloor and
the marine life that depend on it to sustain their populations. It also
prevents the needless human-caused deaths of mammals such as various
species of dolphins, whales, and seals. Finally, the scientific
exemption for these practices exists to help measure the health of
stock, as well as track their migratory behaviors, among other essential
data that helps New York fully understand our waters and the life that
resides in them.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a law.
Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule
or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effec-
tive date are authorized to be made on or before such effective date.

Statutes affected:
S9304: 11-1321 environmental conservation law, 11-1321(1) environmental conservation law, 11-1503 environmental conservation law