Texas Administrative Code › Title 31 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION › Part 2 - TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT › Chapter 58 - OYSTERS, SHRIMP, AND FINFISH › Subchapter A - STATEWIDE OYSTER FISHERY PROCLAMATION › Section 58.11 - Definitions

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
The following words and terms, when used in the subchapter,
					 shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
					 otherwise.
(1) Approved area--A
				  molluscan shellfish growing area determined to be acceptable for harvesting of
				  molluscan shellfish for direct marketing according to the National Shellfish
				  Sanitation Program (NSSP).
(2)
				  Barrel of oysters--As defined in Parks and Wildlife Code, §
										76.001, a barrel of
				  oysters is three boxes of oysters in the shell or two gallons of shucked
				  oysters without shells. The dimensions of a box are ten inches by 20 inches by
				  13 1/2 inches. In filling a box for measurement the oysters may not be piled
				  more than 2 1/2 inches above the height of the box at the center.
(3) Certificate of Location--A
				  department-issued certificate authorizing a person or domestic corporation to
				  plant oysters in a specifically delineated area of the public water of the
				  state for the purpose of establishing a private oyster bed.
(4) Conditionally approved area--The
				  classification of a shellfish growing area determined by the Texas Department
				  of State Health Services (TDSHS) to meet approved area criteria for a
				  predictable period. The period is conditional upon established performance
				  standards specified in a management plan. A conditionally approved area is a
				  restricted area when the area does not meet the approved growing area
				  criteria.
(5) Commission--The Texas
				  Parks and Wildlife Department Commission.
(6) Culling--The process of separating
				  undersized oysters from oysters that are lawful to possess.
(7) Department--The Texas Parks and Wildlife
				  Department.
(8) Director--The
				  executive director of the department.
(9) Harvester/Shell Recovery Tag--An
				  identifying marker that must be affixed to the outside of each sack of oysters
				  at the time of harvest, in the location of harvest, containing information
				  required by the TDSHS under the NSSP, and remain affixed during transportation
				  of the oysters to a dealer.
(10)
				  Location--The acreage of public water for which a certificate of location has
				  been issued.
(11) Location
				  term--The 15-year term of a certificate of location.
(12) Locator--A person or domestic
				  corporation to whom or which a certificate of location has been
				  issued.
(13) Natural oyster bed
				  (reef)--As defined in Parks and Wildlife Code, § 76.051, a natural oyster
				  bed is an area where at least five barrels of oysters are found within 2,500
				  square feet of any position on a reef or bed.
(14) Open season--A period during which it is
				  lawful to take oysters.
(15)
				  Oyster--That species of molluscan shellfish identified as the Eastern oyster,
				  Crassostrea virginica and its subspecies. No other species of molluscan
				  shellfish are included within this proclamation.
(16) Possess--The act of having in possession
				  or control, keeping, detaining, restraining, or holding as owner, or as an
				  agent, bailee, or custodian of another.
(17) Prohibited area--The classification of a
				  shellfish growing area determined by the TDSHS to be unacceptable for the
				  transplanting, gathering for depuration, or harvesting of shellfish. The only
				  shellfish removal permitted from a prohibited area is for the purpose of
				  depletion, as defined in the Control of Harvesting Section of Part 1 of the
				  NSSP.
(18) Public oyster bed
				  (reef)--As defined in Parks and Wildlife Code, §
										76.002,
				  all natural oyster beds (reefs) are public. All oyster beds not designated as
				  private are public.
(19) Restricted
				  area--The classification of a shellfish growing area determined by the TDSHS to
				  be unacceptable for harvesting of shellfish for direct marketing, but which is
				  acceptable for transplanting or gathering for depuration. A restricted area may
				  be closed for transplanting or gathering for depuration when the TDSHS
				  determines that the area does not meet the restricted area criteria established
				  in the NSSP.
(20) Sack of
				  oysters--A volume of oysters, including dead oyster shell that weighs no more
				  than 110 pounds including the sack.
(21) Under location-- An area subject to a
				  certificate of location.