STATUS OF MAJOR MARINE ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES

Shellfish FDA Overflights

The Nassau County Aviation unit has begun to assist us in meeting the FDA patrols this month, The western zone officers have completed two patrols this month and everything seems to working smoothly. Lt. Carbone has continued the overflights with the State Police Aviation unit. This past month he had the opportunity to do a joint patrol with the SP helicopter on an osprey survey. He has continued to oversee the regional report, making necessary notification of shortages when needed.

Mapping of Marine Netting Regulations

Lt. Carbone has begun to map the marine netting regulations onto the DeLorme Street Atlas program, similar to the uncertified mapping he had done previously, This mapping will provide the Region One officers with a graphical view of the regulations for the marine district. He expects this will enhance the officers' ability to answer questions in the field and while on desk duty.

Marine Records Office

Two revocation warnings were sent out this month, in keeping with the new guidelines within CP30 for the non-mandatory revocation process. One notice of the warning was sent to our counterparts in Connecticut to make them aware of continued problems with an individual from their state. Connecticut has previously revoked the individual. Notices of all of the current revocations, including the most recent were sent out to the east coast marine enforcement agencies through the NACLECA mailing, list. Several of the addressees have contacted Captain Thumm to thank her for sending them the information. Others have sent her the email address of the individual in their agency that would be most appropriate to receive such notices.

MARINE COMMERCIAL FISHING/SHELLFISING ENFORCEMENT

Untagged Fluke

On June 24, ECO Escobar was patrolling the "Nautical Mile," a.k.a. Woodcleft Canal, Freeport, and noticed a commercial trawler coming into dock at approximately 0900 behind Captain Bill's Fish Market. The Captain and crew never saw her standing on a neighboring dock as they offloaded an untagged, and over the limit, box of fluke, They were rewarded for their effort with ECATs and will be in court in July for arraignment.

On July 16, at approximately 0700 hours, ECO Escobar noticed a man taking fish boxes out of the walk-in dockside refrigerator belonging to a traveler on Woodcleft Canal in Freeport. The man identified himself as the owner of a market in New Hyde Park and stated that he was picking up his order of fish. He had 2 brown boxes and a black tote of fluke. The tags on the boxes were incomplete, inaccurate, and the boxes contained over the daily limit. The captain came to the dock and was ticketed for the improper tags and overage.

Quick Response Protects Public Health

On the 1st of July, while on boat patrol, ECO's Harger and Reilly received a call from the DEC Region One Shellfish Office regarding a complaint concerning a restaurant in Point Lookout. After a surprise inspection of the restaurant, it was found that they were buying clams from an individual whose license has expired. After further investigation by the ECOs, the clams were also found to have been harvested from a closed area, on the north shore. The clams were seized and destroyed and the owner of the restaurant was issued the appropriate ECATs. The search is on for the digger.

JEA Checks

On June 27, during a JEA check of local fish shops, ECO Vencak inspected a seafood shop, located in Huntington. It seems that the owner, and his crew, violate our laws again and again, and again, etc. On this day they just happen to have 5 striped bass that were, of course, untagged. It seemed that they forgot where the bass came from - what a surprise. The shop was issued ECATs for this violation. But on Friday, July 11, ECO Vencak conducted another one of Region One's JEA checks, finding four boxes of untagged fluke in a freezer. Again he was cited. ECO Vencak eventually sold the 188 lbs. of Fluke to a wholesaler in Freeport, with the proceeds going to NYS DEC.

Commercial Bass Violations

On July 9, while conducting a JEA dockside patrol, ECOs Joe Billotto and Todd Smith, inspected Gosman's fish dock. The ECOs found four striped bass over the size limit in one container belonging to a commercial fisherman from Montauk who has several prior violations for striped bass violations over the last few years. Then in another bin in the cooler the ECOs found seven striped bass, with four of the bass with their tails cut in an attempt to conform to the 36" slot size. Even with the cut tails, these bass were still one to two inches over the slot size. There were two striped bass which were over the slot size which didn't have cut tails and were about 4" over the slot size. In addition, there were two striped bass not properly tagged. This subject also had violations last year for similar acts. Both subjects were ticketed by ECD Joe Billotto, the first subject with taking 4 striped bass over the slot size; the second subject with taking 6 striped bass over the slot size, mutilation of four striped bass and improper tagging of two striped bass. All the striped bass were not saleable and donated to USCG Station Montauk.

Protecting Public Health

On Sunday, August 17, ECD Hovey conducted a routine inspection of a fish store in Kings Park. The proprietor was found to be in possession of striped bass carcasses from Massachusetts in excess of the 36-inch maximum length for the commercial market. An ECAT was issued for violation of this regulation that is designed to protect the public from over exposure to PCBs in the bass population.

Westbury Fish Co., Again

On the afternoon of July 28, ECDs Ward and Vencak conducted a routine inspection of a fish company in Westbury. This is a shop that has been cited several times in the past, including for a felony commercialization charge that is
now pending. After entering the shop's cooler, the ECDs immediately observed a large container of porgies that were untagged. Also, three of the first five bags of clams that were inspected were untagged. The owner of the shop was issued two ECATs for the violations. The 61 pounds of illegal porgies were seized and were I sold to a wholesaler in Freeport, with the proceeds going to New York State DEC. The untagged clams were destroyed.

Fulton Fish Market Detail

On 7/1-2/03 beginning at 2300 hours, a Fulton Fish Market Detail was conducted in Manhattan with DEC's Marine Unit (T/Sgt. Vinski, ECD's Smith, Ruckert, Reilly, Jordan and Major Fanelli). Region 2 (ECD's Graham and Dewey), Region 3 (ECD's Tangen and Basford), along with NMFS Agents Rich Gamba and Jeff Ray. Also in attendance was Special Investigator Robert Weinberg from NYC Business Integrity Commission. ECD Ruckert went to each market and handed out a copy of the new regulations related to the tagging of quota managed fish boxes taken from out of state as a warning for violations of the new regulations that were already in effect. The major focus of the detail was enforcement of manifest requirements of common carriers. During the detail, several Striped Bass violations were documented including the use of 2001 and 2002 tags, over the slot size and mutilation of Striped Bass for the purpose of being within the commercial slot size of 24" to 36". Each dealer was informed of the new tagging regulations of quota-managed species of fish landed in NY or shipped from other states. ECO Smith found a fisherman to be in possession of 199 lbs. of scup, which was 99 lbs. over the daily trip limit. The fisherman was issued an ECAT, and the scup was seized and sold. Several citations were also written for untagged shellfish and failure to prevent the contamination of shellfish.

Charter Boat Permit Violation

On 8/23/03 while patrolling the Long Island Sound aboard Marine 2 Echo, ECOs Tracy, Dewey and Marine Unit Officer Jordan conducted inspections of several recreational fishing vessels. Officer Jordan noticed a charter fishing vessel that he hadn't seen before working the area. The vessel was hailed by Officer Jordan and asked for their NYS Charter Permit number. The Captain of the vessel stated that he was operating his vessel under another Captain's Charter Permit as a favor. He stated that he was taking on passengers from a Charter Fishing vessel that had broken down. The Captain was informed that this was in violation of NYS law and that he would have to terminate his voyage. The boat was met by Marine 2 Echo at the World's Fair Marina in Flushing Bay, Queens and an ECAT was issued to the captain for failing to carry a NYS Charter Permit while carrying passengers, recreational fishermen, for hire.

Uncertified Shellfish Case

On 8/24/03, Marine Unit Officer Jordan with ECO Komonchak, approached the several individuals loading what appeared to be several bags of clams into the trunk of their SUV at Plum Beach in Brooklyn. Immediately Officer Komonchak stopped the three individuals before they drove away. ECO Komonchak confirmed her instincts and with Officer Jordan's assistance, discovered their vehicle contained two and one-half bushels of hard clams. After culling the clams, 617 hard clams (more than a bushel) were found to be less than an inch in thickness. The owner of the SUV was given two criminal court summonses for taking clams from the uncertified waters of Jamaica Bay, and for taking seed clams. Both tickets are returnable to Manhattan Criminal Court on October 16th, 2003.

MARINE RECREATIONAL FISHING ENFORCEMENT

Just a Little Short on The Striners

On July 7, at 2:00 P.M. ECO Colesante stopped at Doxey Creek Park in Western Nassau County to check a handful of fisherman. He received a tip from a retired police officer who was at the park teaching his grandson how to fish. The complainant informed ECO Colesante that there were two men keeping tiny stripers and hiding them on the other side of the park fence. The poachers were getting to the other side of the fence through a small hole. ECO Colesante went through the hole in the fence and found a black plastic bag containing 20 striped bass, ranging in size from 5.5" to 9.5". Each man was issued 2 ECATs for over the creel limit, and under the size limit for striped bass.

Just a Few Porgies

While on a boat patrol of Oyster Bay, on the afternoon of July 10, ECOs Roger Ward and Sean Reilly checked a rental boat that appeared to be traveling back to the dock after a day of fishing. When the four gentlemen were asked if they had any fish, they replied, "Yeah, we got a few." The fishermen proudly opened the two coolers in the front of the small boat. Both coolers were full of large porgies. When asked what was in the two coolers in the back of the boat, the fishermen explained that one was full of mostly ice, while the other was full of drinks. However, when the coolers were opened, both were also full of porgies. After seeing four coolers of porgies, the ECOs decided to count them. Once the four coolers were on the patrol vessel, the ECOs could see a plastic bag on the subject's boat, full of guess what -more porgies. After counting and measuring the fish, the results were 263 porgies (63 over the limit) with 9 shorts. ECATs were issued by the ECOs, returnable to Nassau County District Court.

Undersized Fish

On June 19, ECO Caifa was at Captree State Park watching a group of fishermen when he observed one of them catch a small striped bass and hide it in the bushes. After watching for several more minutes, ECO Caifa went down to the water and said hello. He recognized one of the men because of a similar incident on the north shore last summer. The man also remembered ECO Caifa, and tried to engage him in conversation about how bad the fishing was that day, while staying between the ECO and the short fish. When ECO Caifa went around him and into the bushes, he found the short striper and several short fluke. The man admitted that they were his and received 2 ECATs.

Discarded Fish Carcass Leads to Beach Closure

On Monday, July 14, news reached DLE staff in Region One of a town beach closure on Patchogue Bay, due to an increase in the coliform count. The local media had picked up the story, attributing the incident to the fact that fish parts had been observed in the area. ECO Sincebaugh was assigned to investigate the matter. On Wednesday, July 16, after interviewing several people in the area, he was able to determine that a local fisherman had caught a mako shark on Sunday and cleaned it in an adjoining creek. The fisherman admitted to this, but was not aware that such an act was illegal. The remorseful fisherman was issued two ECATs for depositing waste fish within 500 feet of the shore, and for polluting the waters of the marine district. It should be noted, however, that this area of Patchogue Bay is normally an uncertified shellfishing area prone to high coliform counts. The health department does not believe that the fish parts had a significant effect on the increase in coliform. The beach has since been reopened.

Fishing for Violations

On July 11, Environmental Conservation Officers from the Western, Central and Eastern Zones teamed up in response to several complaints regarding violations aboard a striped bass charter boat. Complainants stated that the crew of the vessel were taking over their limit of striped bass during the excursions and later selling the fish. Four plain-clothes officers took part in the fishing charter on the evening of July 11, to observe the activities of the crew and passengers on the vessel. ECOs Hovey and Snyder chose two aft locations, while ECOs Ferraro and Ward set themselves up forward on the vessel. The officers blended in with the rest of the fares for the length of the trip and quietly observed several violations occurring around them. When the boat returned to dock in Lake Montauk, the vessel was met by uniformed ECOs Joe Billotto, Enright, Hatch, Smith, Lt. Meade and a member of US Coast Guard Station Montauk who intercepted the passengers before they were able to depart. The plain-clothes officers coordinated with uniformed officers to separate out the violators and charge them accordingly. Although the fishing wasn't great on this particular evening, a couple of passengers took over their limit of two striped bass. Additionally, officers observed the crew failing to return fish to the water without undue harm, as all the bass that were hooked were gaffed; overheard crew members telling passengers to take over their limit and give the fish away; observed that the marine sanitation device was releasing waste into the water, and determined that the vessel entered federal waters during parts of the fishing excursion.

Lady in a Hurry

On June 23, ECO Enright was on routine patrol checking recreational and commercial fishermen. ECO Enright encountered a female fishing enthusiast who was well known to the local marine police and other ECOs. The female was just departing the area of Petersens Fishing Station at Mattituck. ECO Enright questioned if she had any fish and the female offered to show him her catch. After measuring and counting, the lady was found to be in possession of 75 scup, (25 in excess of legal daily limit). ECO Enright obtained her drivers license and advised he was going to issue an ECAT. The entire time the counting was taking place, the lady was insisting the fish had been caught over a 3-day period. The lady also continually stated that she had to get back to New York City to open her business at 5:00 P.M. Surprisingly, as ECO Enright entered his vehicle to write the ECAT the lady got in her vehicle and took off. ECO Enright caught up with her a short distance up the road, advised that if she was arrested, she probably would not get back to New York City until the next day. ECO Enright issued the ECAT. Ironically, the lady has plead not guilty and the matter is on for trial on September 26, at Southold Town Court.

Profitable Bike Patrol

During a JEA bike patrol of Mattituck Inlet, ECO Gadomski witnessed a fisherman catch what appeared to be an undersized striped bass. The subject was at the far end of the jetty. After he landed the fish, he went behind a cement pillar, which blocked ECO Gadomski's view. ECO Gadomski radioed to Southold Bay Constable Epple, who was on boat patrol of Long Island Sound. BC Epple responded to the tip of the jetty to watch the fisherman as ECO Gadomski walked out to him. As ECO Gadomski approached, the fisherman attempted to dump his bucket, but was ordered not to by Epple. The fisherman was found to have one undersized striped bass and several undersized scup. ECO Gadomski issued the fisherman two ECATS. While on the jetty, ECO Gadomski checked several other fishermen, two of which were in possession of undersized Scup. They deservedly each received an ECAT.

#1 On Our Hit Parade

Late last month, ECO Enright was on routine patrol checking recreational and commercial fishermen in the Marine District waters of Southold Town. While working the launch ramp area of Gull Pond at Greenport, ECO Enright observed a gentleman well known to ECOs and local Marine Police as one of our most persistent offenders. The subject had loaded his boat onto a trailer and was departing the area. ECO Enright followed the subject and noticed that he had no operating lights on the trailer. ECO Enright stopped the subject and questioned him about the inoperable trailer lights and then his fishing activity. Several buckets of fish were visible in the rear of the boat. A compliance check revealed that the fisherman was in possession of 146 scup, 96 fish in excess of the legal daily limit of 50. ECO Enright issued an ECAT for the over limit fish, and a TSLED for the inoperable trailer lights. A check on priors revealed that the subject has convictions for 12 ECL violations dating back to 1999. All violations were for either over limit, undersized, and or out of season on a variety of marine fish species.

MISCELLANEOUS ACTIVITIES

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