Section 188-24-30 - Marine Fish Health Inspection Regulations1.Prohibited ActivityA. Except as provided in this subsection, it is unlawful to transfer marine finfish to any fish culture facility in Maine or stock marine finfish into the coastal waters of Maine that do not meet the requirements of these rules. The Commissioner may, at his discretion and in consultation with the AAHTC, issue a permit to import or transfer finfish from sources or facilities that do not meet the requirements of these rules to an approved quarantine facility. Transfer from an approved quarantine facility or a change in operation to that which is less biosecure, may be permitted if post-import testing provides satisfactory evidence of freedom from those pathogens or regulatory concern for which evidence of freedom was not satisfied at the time of import.
B. No clinically diseased finfish shall be introduced into the coastal waters of Maine.2.DefinitionsFor the purposes of these rules the following terms have the following meanings:
A.Broodstock Sources:(1)"Wild Caught Broodstock" means fish that are removed from the coastal waters and transferred to a land-based culture facility for use as broodstock.(2)"Hatchery-based Broodstock" means fish that originate from and never leave a culture facility, and are selected to become broodstock.(3)"Marine-site Cultured Broodstock" means fish that are cultured in the coastal waters and spawned in the coastal waters or transferred to a land-based culture facility for use as broodstock.3.Compliance Reporting Requirements, Reporting and PermitsA.Inspections(1) Any person wishing to import, possess, or sell marine finfish for the purposes of stocking into coastal waters of maine shall provide a fish health inspection report stating that such finfish have been inspected for all diseases of regulatory concern before a permit to engage in such activity is issued.(2) Marine finfish taken from the wild shall be subject to quarantine, in a facility approved by DMR, for at least 90 days pending the completion of inspection procedures and the issuance of a fish health inspection report. Any mortality that occurs during collection or transport and a representative sample of the finfish should be selected during the movement event for testing as prescribed for size group 2 of the relevant species.B. Any fish culture facility raising finfish to be introduced into the coastal waters of Maine must submit the most current annual fish health inspection report on approved forms to the Department of Marine Resources prior to the sale and/or movement of such finfish from the facility.C. Except as provided in Chapter 24.30(1)(A), any person applying for a permit to import marine finfish into the State of Maine shall demonstrate that the finfish being imported are free from evidence of all diseases of regulatory concern, and originate from a qualified source/hatchery. The Commissioner may prescribe additional fish health testing requirements for importation of finfish into the State of Maine. A copy of the current approved transfer permit shall accompany the finfish during transfer.D. Any person offering finfish for sale or transferring finfish to a source in Maine shall provide a current fish health inspection report to any customer or recipient of the fish. A copy of the current approved transfer permit shall accompany the finfish during transfer.E. Finfish transferred for purposes of immediate harvest for human consumption, or diagnostic inspection shall not be subject to the provisions of these rules. Finfish harvested for the purposes of human consumption shall be harvested, handled, processed and transported using measures to minimize the introduction of infectious disease into Maine waters. The Aquatic Animal Health Technical Committee will serve as a technical resource in developing guidelines for biosecurity measures associated with harvesting, transport and processing. F. Finfish may not be transferred between marine net-pen facilities without a marine transfer permit. 13-188 C.M.R. ch. 24, § 30