Section 5 AAC 01.620 - Lawful gear and gear specifications(a) Fish may be taken by gear listed in 5 AAC 01.010(a) unless restricted in this section or under the terms of a subsistence fishing permit.(b) Salmon may be taken only by the following types of gear: (1) in the Glennallen Subdistrict by fish wheels or dip nets;(3) in salt water by a gillnet or seine, in a district as specified in 5 AAC 24.330, and as follows: (A) by a gillnet as described in 5 AAC 01.010(c);(B) by a seine that is not longer than 50 fathoms in length and 100 meshes in depth with a maximum mesh size of four inches;(5) notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter, by gillnet gear as specified in 5 AAC 01.010(c) for the area that is closed to commercial fishing as described in 5 AAC 01.645(b).(c) Fish wheels used for subsistence fishing may be operated only as follows: (1) the owner of a fish wheel shall register that fish wheel with the department; the department shall issue a registration number for the fish wheel; that registration number, and either the owner's name and address or the owner's permanent identification number from a valid Alaska driver's license or a state identification card, must be permanently affixed and plainly visible on the fish wheel on a wood, metal, or plastic plate that is at least 12 inches high by 12 inches wide, in letters and numerals at least one inch high, when the fish wheel is in the water; only the registration number from the current year may be affixed to the fish wheel; any other registration number must be removed from the fish wheel;(2) the owner of a fish wheel registered under (1) of this subsection is responsible for the fish wheel when the fish wheel is in the water;(3) when the permit holder is a person other than the owner of the fish wheel, in addition to the requirements of (1) of this subsection, an additional plate of wood, metal, or plastic, that is at least 12 inches high by 12 inches wide bearing the permit holder's name and address in letters and numerals at least one inch high must be attached to each fish wheel so that the name and address are plainly visible;(4) a permit holder may operate only one fish wheel at a time and a fish wheel may be operated only by one permit holder at a time; that permit holder must; (A) have the fish wheel marked as specified in this subsection during fishing operations; and(B) check the fish wheel at least once every 10 hours and remove all fish caught by the fish wheel;(5) a person may not set or operate a fish wheel within 75 feet of another fish wheel;(6) a fish wheel (A) may not have more than two baskets;(B) must be removed from the water at the end of the permit period; and(C) may not be rented, leased, or otherwise used for personal gain.(d) Halibut may be taken only by a single hand-held line with not more than two hooks attached to it.(e) The permit holder must personally operate the fish wheel or dip net. A subsistence fish wheel or dip net permit may not be loaned or transferred except as permitted under 5 AAC 01.011.(f) Herring spawn on kelp may be taken only by a hand-held unpowered blade-cutting device. Kelp plant blades must be cut at least four inches above the stipe (stem). The provisions of this subsection do not apply to Fucus species.(h) Groundfish may be taken only by a single hand troll, single hand-held line, or a single longline, none of which may have more than five hooks attached to it, except that (1) lingcod taken incidentally during a subsistence finfish fishery are lawfully taken and may be retained for subsistence purposes subject to the limitations described in 5 AAC 01.610(f) and 5 AAC 01.645(d);(2) rockfish taken incidentally during a subsistence finfish fishery are lawfully taken and may be retained for subsistence purposes subject to the limitations described in 5 AAC 01.645(e); and(3) groundfish taken incidentally in a subsistence net fishery, consistent with applicable subsistence salmon laws and regulations, are lawfully taken and may be retained for subsistence purposes.(j) In addition to the requirements under 5 AAC 01.010(h), a buoy attached to one end of a subsistence gillnet must be marked in printed type with the first initial, last name, and address of the subsistence permit holder, or the ADF&G vessel license number of the vessel used to operate the gear, in numbers and letters that are (1) at least one inch high;(2) in a color that contrasts with the background; and(3) plainly visible when the gear is in the water.(k) Gillnets used to take herring may not exceed 10 fathoms in length.(l) Subsistence fishing guide services are prohibited in the Glennallen Subdistrict. For the purposes of this subsection, (1) "subsistence fishing guide services" means assistance, for compensation or with the intent to receive compensation, to a subsistence fisherman to take or to attempt to take fish from a vessel by accompanying or physically directing the subsistence fisherman in subsistence fishing activities during any part of a subsistence fishing trip;(2) "compensation" means direct or indirect payment, remuneration, and other benefits received in return for services, regardless of the source; in this paragraph, "benefits" (A) includes (i) wages and other employment benefits given directly or indirectly to an individual or organization; and(ii) dues, payments, fees, and other remuneration given directly or indirectly to a fishing club, business, organization, or individual who provides subsistence fishing guide services;(B) does not include reimbursement for the actual daily expenses for fuel, food, or bait.(m) Gillnets used to take freshwater fin fish may not exceed 100 feet in length, eight feet in depth, and a mesh size greater than four inches stretched measure and may only be used(1) for whitefish and suckers; all other species may not be retained and must be returned to the water unharmed; permit holders finding five or more lake trout in their net shall move their fishing location at least one-quarter mile to avoid further catch of nontarget species;(2) from October 1 - March 30; and(n) Fyke nets must have an entrance funnel opening of no greater than four inches maximum straight-line distance between any two points.In effect before 1983; am 6/30/83, Register 86; am 4/28/84, Register 90; am 4/30/91, Register 118; readopt 5/15/93, Register 126; am 5/24/97, Register 142; am 3/30/2000, Register 153; am 5/11/2003, Register 166; am 6/12/2003, Register 166; am 3/30/2006, Register 177; am 3/14/2009, Register 189; am 3/29/2018, Register 225, April 2018; am 3/27/2022, Register 241, April 2022Authority:AS 16.05.251
AS 16.05.258