Current regulations allow lay nets to soak for up to four hours, with a requirement that they be checked every two. The minimum mesh size is 2 ¾ inches. Lay nets are not allowed in Hilo Bay, and as well as several fisheries management areas along West Hawai`i. The new rules, approved by the Land Board and awaiting the review and approval from the deputy attorney general and Governor’s offices, do the following:
- define lay nets as a gill net that is used in lay net fishing, and adds pa`ipa`i netting (where fishers hit the water to chase fish into outstretched nets) and moemoe netting to the definition of lay netting;
- prohibit lay netting in state waters around the entire island of Maui, in Kane`ohe Bay between the Sampan and Ship channels, in O`ahu’s Kailua Bay between Mokapu and Wailea Points, and along O`ahu’s south shore between Kawaihoa Point (Portlock) and Keahi Point (Pearl Harbor);
- require lay net users to register their nets with the state;
- limit net length to 125 feet, and height to seven feet;
- prohibit the linking of nets;
- standardize mesh size across all types of lay net (2 ¾ inches);
- require each net to have four DLNR identification tags;
- limit use to one net per person;
- require nets to have at least two buoys with registration numbers and reflective tape at either end of the float line;
- set a minimum distance of 250 feet between lay nets;
- set a maximum depth of 25 feet for recreational fishers and 100 feet for commercial fishers;
- limit sets to four hours within a 24-hour period;
- prohibit leaving nets unattended for more than 30 minutes;
- prohibit coral damage by nets;
- prohibit lay netting in streams or stream mouths;
- prohibit netting from two hours after sunset to two hours before sunrise;
- make it illegal to put false identification tags on unregistered nets;
- require net owners to report to the DLNR any registered net that is lost, stolen or given away or is otherwise no longer the property of the registered owner;
- allow the DLNR to confiscate nets not in compliance with the rules.
— Teresa Dawson
Volume 17, Number 6 December 2006