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Area C Byelaws

The following is a summary of the Kent and Essex IFCA Byelaws

These byelaws apply to the northern part of the district previously regulated by theEastern Sea Fisheries Joint Committee.

“No person shall in fishing for seafish in that part of the District which lies within three nautical miles from the 1983 baselines use any kind of trawl net provided that this byelaw shall not apply to the use by any person of a trawl net in the following circumstances;

(b)   in connection with a vessel whose overall length does not exceed 15.24 metres in the area between a line drawn True North East from Mundesley Church in the County of Norfolk (Latitude 52o52.50′N Longitude 01o26.15′E) to the northern edge of the causeway (Latitude 51o55.76′N Longitude 01o16.90′E) situated opposite Lower Marine Parade at Dovercourt in the County of Essex to where it intersects the line of mean low water and thence drawn seaward on a bearing 100o True, being the southern extremity of the District.

For the purposes of this byelaw, “the 1983 baselines” means the baselines as they existed at 25 January 1983 in accordance with the Territorial Waters Order in Council 1964 (1965 IIIp.6452A, amended by 1979 IIp.2866).
For the purposes of this byelaw, the overall length of a vessel shall be the overall length as determined by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen and shown on the Certificate of Registry of a British Fishing Vessel.

“No person shall remove from any fishery, or from one part of a fishery to another part thereof, any mussel (Mytilus edulis) less than 50 mm in length but shall return such shellfish to the sea immediately

“No person shall remove from any fishery any edible crab (Cancer pagurus)or lobster (Homarus gammarus) which is soft-shelled or berried (egg-bearing) but shall return such shellfish to the sea immediately.”

Repealed and replaced with Minimum Sizes Byelaw on 12/02/2021

Repealed and replaced with Minimum Sizes Byelaw on 12/02/2021

“No person shall remove from a fishery any tope of the species (Galeorhinus galeus) or part(s) thereof which is detached from the body.

Any tope, if caught, shall be returned immediately to the sea in a position as near to that part of the sea from which it was taken.