Gear Marking Instruction

SUPPLEMENT C | Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan Gear Marking

Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan
Gear Marking
Why Is Gear Marking Required?
The Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan requires that surface buoys and buoy lines
be marked with information that will allow us to better understand where and how whales
become entangled in vertical lines associated with trap/pot and gillnet fisheries.

MARKING SURFACE BUOYS
Surface buoys need to be marked to identify your vessel or
fishery with one of the following:
• Your motorboat registration number and/or U.S. vessel
documentation number;
• The federal commercial fishing permit number; or
• Whatever positive identification marking is required by the
vessel’s home-port state.
When marking is not already required by state or federal
regulations, the letters and numbers to mark gear must be at least
1 inch (2.5 cm) in height, block letters or Arabic numbers, in a
color that contrasts with the color of the buoy.

For More Information Contact the
NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Gear Team
Northeast Fisheries Liaison: John Higgins. (207) 677-2316.
John.Higgins@noaa.gov
Mid/South Atlantic Fisheries Liaison: Glenn Salvador. (757) 414-0128.
Glenn.Salvador@noaa.gov
or visit our website:

www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/whaletrp

OMB Control No. 0648-0364

National Marine Fisheries Service Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office Protected Resources Division 978-281-9328

SUPPLEMENT C | Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan Gear Marking

GEAR MARKING REQUIREMENTS
The 12” colored required marks can be
accomplished in a variety of ways. Shown
are three simple methods that were tested
and found to work satisfactorily under
normal conditions. At the top, colored twine
is seized around the line and woven
between the strands. In the center, the line
was spray-painted; this method requires that
the rope be dry. At the bottom, colored
electrical tape was wrapped in one direction
and then back over itself to form two layers.
All buoy lines must be marked with three

12 inch (30.48 cm), colored marks: one at the top of the buoy line, one midway along the buoy line, and one at
the bottom of the buoy line. Each color code must be permanently affixed on or along the line and each

color code must be clearly visible when the gear is hauled or removed from the water.
For specific management area color requirements, see below:

Gear Marking Color

RED

RED & BLUE

Applicable Trap/Pot Management Area
•
•
•
•
•

Massachusetts Restricted Area
Northern Nearshore Trap/Pot Waters
Northern Inshore State Trap/Pot Waters
Stellwagen Bank Jeffreys Ledge Restricted Area
Great South Channel Restricted Area overlapping Lobster
Management Area (LMA) 2 and/or the Outer Cape (OC) LMA.

• Exempt RI state waters

RED & WHITE

• Exempt MA state waters in LMA 1

RED & BLACK

• Exempt MA state waters in LMA 2

RED & YELLOW

• Exempt MA state waters Outer Cape

RED & ORANGE:

• Isle of Shoals, Maine

RED (Or BLACK) &
PURPLE
ORANGE:
BLACK

OMB Control No. 0648-0364

• Jordan Basin (Trap/Pot)
• Southern Nearshore Trap/Pot Waters.
• Offshore Trap/Pot Waters; Great South Channel Restricted Area
overlapping with the LMA 2/3 Overlap and/or LMA 3

National Marine Fisheries Service Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office Protected Resources Division 978-281-9328

SUPPLEMENT C | Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan Gear Marking

GEAR MARKING REQUIREMENTS
Gear Marking Color

RED & GREEN

Applicable Gillnet Management Area
• Jeffrey Ledge (Trap/Pot)

GREEN & BLACK

• Jeffrey Ledge (Gillnet)

GREEN & YELLOW

• Jordan Basin (Gillnet)

BLUE & ORANGE

• Southeast Restricted Area North

(state waters)

GREEN & ORANGE

• Southeast Restricted Area North

(Federal waters)

GREEN

BLUE
YELLOW

GREEN & BLUE

•
•
•
•
•

Cape Cod Bay Restricted Area
Great South Channel Restricted Gillnet Area
Great South Channel Sliver Restricted Gillnet Area
Stellwagen Bank/Jeffreys Ledge Restricted Area
Other Northeast Gillnet Waters (Northeast & Mid-Atlantic)

• Mid/South Atlantic Gillnet Waters
Excluding Shark Gillnet:
• Southeast US Restricted Area South*
• Other Southeast Gillnet Waters*
Shark Gillnet (with webbing of 5” or greater)
• Southeast US Monitoring Area*
• Southeast US Restricted Area South*
• Other Southeast Gillnet Waters*

*Southeast gillnet management areas also require that each gillnet panel be marked along
both the floatline and the leadline at least once every 100 yards, unless otherwise required.
Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 5 minutes per response, including the
time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and
completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other
suggestions for reducing this burden to NMFS Office of Protected Resources, 1315 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD
20910.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subjected to
a penalty for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction
Act, unless that collection of information displays a currently valid OMB Control Number.
National Marine Fisheries Service Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office Protected Resources Division 978-281-9328

OMB Control No. 0648-0364