Section 250-RICR-40-00-1.7 - DefinitionsA. As used in these Rules and Regulations, the following words and phrases have the following meanings: 1. "Adequately iced" means that the amount and application of the ice is sufficient to ensure that immediate cooling begins and continues for all shellfish. If ice slurry is used and the shellfish are submerged the presence of ice in the slurry indicates adequate icing. The water source for, the production of, and the handling of the ice must be approved by the Rhode Island Department of Health (DOH) for the intended use of cooling shellfish.2. "Approved waters" or "Approved shellfish growing areas" means waters of the State which have been classified by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) Office of Water Resources as Approved Areas, fit for the taking of shellfish for human consumption on a regular basis, according to criteria established by the National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP) Guide for the Control of Molluscan Shellfish. These classifications may be subject to change as water quality conditions dictate.3. "Aquaculture" means the cultivation, rearing, or propagation of aquatic plants or animals, hereinafter referred to as cultured crops, under natural or artificial conditions.4. "Aquaculture facility" means any properly permitted aquaculture operation, either in upland areas or in the State's waters or submerged lands.5. "Aquaculture lease" means the permitted area for which the Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) issues a lease in which aquaculture can be conducted. Leases are discretionary and granted for the express purpose of allowing aquaculture activities on the State's submerged lands or in the water column. Certain types of permitted activities, such as experimental aquaculture operations, may not require a lease.6. "Aquaculturist" means the individual, firm, partnership, association, academic institution, municipality, or corporation conducting commercial, experimental or restoration aquaculture in Rhode Island.7. "Biosecurity board" means the board, within the Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC), established pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 20-10-1.1 and charged with assisting and advising the CRMC in carrying out its role under the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 20-10.8. "Conditionally approved areas" means any shellfish grounds underlying waters examined and found fit for the taking of shellfish for human consumption on an intermittent basis, declared by the Director as conditionally approved waters pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 20-8.1-3 and 20-8.1-4. Such classification may be subject to change as water quality conditions dictate.9. "Container" means any bag, sack, tote, conveyance, or other receptacle used for containing shellfish for holding or transporting.10. "CRMC" means the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council.11. "Cultured crops" means aquatic or marine animals or plants:a. That are in the location, water column or artificial conditions specified in a valid aquaculture permit issued pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 20-10-3 or that have been taken by the holder of such permit from the location, water column or artificial conditions specified in such permit, or,b. That have been produced by aquaculture methods outside the State and have not been commingled with wild stocks that are in or have been removed from the waters of the State. Appropriate bills of sale, bills of lading and proper tags used in accordance with § 1.11 of this Part, therein and all other applicable State and Federal laws and Regulations shall be prima facie evidence of the origin of cultured crops inside or outside the State.12. "DEM" means the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.13. "Designated temperature control" or "Thermally impacted area" means an area designated by the Department in which aquaculturists must comply with more stringent temperature controls for harvested shellfish. These areas have been determined to be Winnapaug Pond, Quonochontaug Pond, Ninigret Pond, Potter Pond, Point Judith Pond, Island Park Cove (Spectacle Cove), Hog Island Cove and Great Salt Pond.14. "Director" means the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management or his/her duly appointed agents.15. "DOH" means the Rhode Island Department of Health.16. "Harvest" means the act of removing shellstock with the intention of not returning to the water after husbandry practices. Harvest commences when the first shellfish not returned to the water is removed from the water on any given day, or is exposed by the receding tide.17. "Husbandry" means any activity related to the cultivation and management of shellfish crops, including but not limited to grading, sorting, cleaning, or planting.18. "Mechanical refrigeration" means storage in a container or conveyance that is approved by the Rhode Island Department of Health and capable of cooling to, and maintaining, an ambient temperature of forty-five degrees Fahrenheit (45° F) or less.19. "Operational plan" means a written plan filed with CRMC and, approved by DEM prior to its implementation, that includes, at a minimum: description of the design and activities of the aquaculture facility, specific location and boundaries of the aquaculture lease and facility, types and locations of structures (rafts, pens, tanks, etc.), species to be cultured, source of these organisms (i.e., wild or cultured), procedures to prevent contamination (including mitigation or deterrent measures that will be used to minimize the potential pollution impact of birds on operations using floating gear), program of sanitation and maintenance, description of the water source including details of water treatment, program to maintain water quality, maintenance of records (including but not limited to records on the use of seed from prohibited waters and the re-submergence of shellfish prior to harvest), and how shell stock will be harvested in accordance with these Rules and Regulations including but not limited to § 1.12 of this Part "Temperature Control of Shellfish".20. "Person" means an individual, firm, corporation, society, association, partnership, or private or public body.21. "Possession of aquaculture crops" means the exercise of dominion or control over cultured crops commencing at the time at which a decision is made not to return the crops to the aquaculture lease or facility from which they were taken. This decision must be made at the first practical opportunity, taking into consideration the management practices set forth in the approved operational plan.22. "Possession of wild stocks" means the exercise of dominion or control over wild stocks commencing at the time at which a decision is made not to return the resource to the immediate vicinity from which it was taken. This decision must be made at the first practical opportunity.23. "Resubmerge" means, and is strictly limited to, reintroduction of shell stock into approved waters following the removal of such stock from approved waters for husbandry purposes.24. "Shading" means to shelter by intercepting the direct rays of the sun to protect the shellfish from heat. Shading may be accomplished by any means that effectively protects the harvested shellfish from direct sunlight and prevents excessive heat build-up in the shaded area.25. "Shellfish" means all species of: a. Oysters, clams or mussels, whether: (1) Shucked or in the shell;(2) Raw, including post-harvest processed;(4) Whole or in part; and,b. Scallops in any form, except when the final product form is the adductor muscle only.26. "Shellfish seed" means, for bay quahog, a shell size less than twenty millimeters (20 mm) (0.78") longest axis length; for oysters, a shell size less than thirty-two millimeters (32 mm) (1.25") longest axis length, and for blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) any mussel that settled during the current calendar year.27. "Spat" means newly settled post-metamorphic bivalve.28. "Spat collection" means the use of artificial apparatus (spat collectors) to induce settlement of larval shellfish.29. "Temperature control" means the use of ice, mechanical refrigeration or other approved means capable of lowering and/or maintaining the temperature of the shellstock at fifty degrees Fahrenheit (50° F) or less.30. "Wild stock" means natural resources, including aquatic or marine animals or plants, which grow within the waters of the State, and are not cultured in any way. Any shellfish that have settled naturally within an aquaculture facility are considered wild stock.250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-40-00-1.7
Amended effective 2/4/2021
Amended effective 7/14/2021
Amended effective 8/11/2024