Section 69.203 - DefinitionsThe following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Commission--The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission.(2) Department--The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.(3) Depth--Water depth at mean low water.(4) Director--The executive director of the department.(5) Dredge spoils--The waste or refuse discarded onto the bottom from the dredge or associated vessels during dredging or the washing and screening of the dredged material.(6) Dredging activities--All marine operations related to recovery of mudshell conducted by or at the request or direction of the permittee, including but not expressly limited to the movement of dredges, the placement of anchors or buoys, actual dredging operations, the stockpiling and holding of dredged shell, the disposal of waste or overburden, the movement of tugboats or any other form of vessel or equipment utilized in connection with the overall dredging operation, the movement of crewboats or any supply and support vessels, or any description or any combination of these acts. The movement of survey and crewboats engaged in the exploration for buried mudshell deposits even when operating outside of the permitted area is not considered a dredging activity under the definition. The movement of vessels and equipment when in an authorized and marked navigation channel, including private channels which are established under the provisions of state and federal authorities for private channels, is not considered a dredging activity.(7) Exposed reef--Any natural or man-made exposed deposit of oyster or other marine shell that constitutes a part of the bay bottom.(8) General permit--The written permission given to an applicant by the department granting him the privilege to dredge buried shell from the waters of designated state land tracts or portions thereof in accordance with the provisions of these rules and regulations.(9) Major violation--Includes, but is not limited to, dredging activities in a state land tract which is not included in the general or special permit; operating without a permit; dredging or operating closer than 300 feet to a known exposed reef of any size or closer than 300 feet to an uncharted exposed reef one acre or more in size, or except within 100 feet of an exposed reef in state Tracts 74, 101, 102, and 106 in San Antonio Bay; dredging or operating within 1/2 mile of shore; dredging or operating in marginal waters less than four feet in depth; failure to respond to a stop activity order given as a result of any violation; failure to map and mark the edges of all exposed reefs within 1,500 feet of any dredging prior to the commencement of any dredging within an authorized tract; dredging an exposed reef 1/2 acre or larger; dredging an exposed reef of less than 1/2 acre without permission from the director; dredging in a tract not designated as open by the director; operating more than one dredge at one time in a single bay system or failure to use a silt screen when required to do so by the department agent.(10) Marginal waters less than four feet deep--All waters of the bay extending out from the shoreline including the shoreline of natural islands to the first contour line where the water has a depth of four feet at mean low water.(11) Minor violation--Siltation of exposed reef in excess of a trace as defined in this section. These siltations may be the direct result of dredging shell or may be caused by related dredging activities as defined in this section, such as towboats handling shell barges or by other dredging activities.(12) One year--Any period of 365 consecutive days.(13) Operations--Any aspects of shell dredging activities engaged by any permittee exclusive of exploration by the use of survey and crew boats for buried mudshell and marking the limits of an exposed reef.(14) Permittee--The person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, or entity who has applied for and has been granted a permit to dredge shell from the state-owned waters by the department, and the term includes the agent, servants, and employees of the permit holder.(15) Siltation--The placement or deposition of sediments on exposed reefs either directly by, or as an incident to, shell dredging activities (including the operation of barges and towboats) as well as indirectly (as when the disturbed sediments are moved or assisted in movement by wind, waves, current or tides). Fresh silt from dredging activities can be differentiated from natural silt by its chemical and/or physical properties. Degree of siltation will be determined by the criteria described in the technical report to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, November 1967, Shell Dredging, A Factor in Sedimentation in Galveston Bay, published by the University of Texas.(A) A scale of zero to five as shown below will be assigned for different silt readings obtained from silt baskets and tong samples of oyster shell from the reef surface. Attached Graphic
(B) A "trace of silt" is indicated when the bottoms of the cups of dead oyster shell are found to contain a thin layer of fine gray sediment which is discernible to the eye.(C) A "coating of silt" is determined when shell cups of dead oyster shell are full of fine gray silt.(16) Special permit--The written permission given to an applicant by the department granting him the privilege of dredging areas not authorized under a general permit and subject to the conditions specified in the special permit.(17) Violation by accident or act of God--With the sole exception of the actual operation of the dredge, shall not be a violation by the permittee if a barge or vessel encounters an exposed reef.31 Tex. Admin. Code § 69.203
The provisions of this §69.203 adopted to be effective February 4, 1997, 22 TexReg 959; amended to be effective April 23, 2001, 26 TexReg 3027