Ohio Administrative Code
Title 1501:31 - Division of Wildlife
Chapter 1501:31-3 - Commercial Fishing
Section 1501:31-3-04 - Prohibited places and times for using nets in lake Erie

(A) It shall be unlawful for any person to use or to set, place, fish, locate, or maintain a net or trotline in the limited fishing areas in the lake Erie fishing district described as follows:

(B) It shall be unlawful for any person to set or use in fishing a net or trotline within one-half mile of West Sister island, located in Jerusalem township, Lucas county waters of lake Erie northeast of Toledo, Ohio.

(C) It shall be unlawful for any person to set, use or maintain from May fifteenth to October fifteenth each year a net or trotline within four nautical miles of the stipulated reference points at each of the following Ohio lake Erie harbors:

Vermilion - the thirty-foot-high flashing white light at six-second intervals at longitude 82° 21' 50.1 " and latitude 41° 25' 45.1 ".

Lorain - the sixty-foot-high flashing white light at five-second intervals at longitude 82° 11' 43.29 " and latitude 41° 28' 51.62 ".

Cleveland - the sixty-three-foot-high west pierhead light with alternating white and red continuous lights at ten-second intervals at longitude 81° 43' 04.35 " and latitude 41° 30' 32.21 " and the fifty-nine-foot-high east entrance light with isophase or equal interval red light with six-second phase at longitude 81° 39' 05.06 " and latitude 41° 32' 34.98 ".

Fairport harbor - the fifty-six-foot-high west breakwater light with isophase or equal interval red light with six-second phase at longitude 81° 16' 54.46 " and latitude 41° 46' 03.03 ".

Ashtabula - the forty-six-foot-high west pierhead light with a fixed red light at longitude 80° 47' 42.12 " and latitude 41° 55' 11.68 ".

Conneaut - the eighty-foot-high west pier light with alternating white and red continuous light at ten-second intervals at longitude 80° 33' 27.29 " and latitude 41° 58' 48.07 ".

Descriptions of reference point lights and their geographic locations are taken from the "National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Survey Charts."

All other geographic points used in this rule were taken from the "National Ocean Survey, Lake Survey Chart 14830, Aid to Navigation."

(D) It shall be unlawful for any person to set a net or use any device in fishing, except a seine, in the following described area:

Maumee bay waters of the lake Erie fishing district located in Lucas county north, northeast and east of Toledo, Ohio, beginning at the west bank of the mouth of the Maumee river; thence northwest and northerly following the lake Erie shoreline to the Ohio-Michigan boundary line; thence east and northeast following the Ohio-Michigan boundary line in lake Erie to Turtle island; thence southeasterly to the northerly tip of Cedar Point marsh in Jerusalem township; thence southwest and westerly following the lake Erie shoreline to the east bank of the mouth of the Maumee river; thence westerly across the mouth of the Maumee river to the point of beginning.

(E) Except as otherwise provided, it shall be unlawful for any person, to set, maintain, or use a net, seine, or any other fishing device, other than a trotline or hook and line, from May fifteenth to the following October fifteenth within one mile of the shoreline in a portion of lake Erie bounded on the west by an imaginary line running due north from the water tower of the "Ford Motor Company" west of Lorain to an imaginary point one mile offshore, and on the east by an imaginary line running due north from the east bank of the Chagrin river to a point one mile offshore.

(F) It shall be unlawful for any person to set, maintain or use a net, or other fishing devices from May fifteenth through October fifteenth in that portion of lake Erie beginning at the Lakeside association dock for one-half mile north at 41° 33' 35" north and 82° 45' 05" west, to a point one-half mile northeast of the Marblehead lighthouse at 41° 32' 35" north and 82° 42' 20" west to a point extending one-half mile off the Sandusky pier light at 41° 30' 15" north and 82° 39' 55" west.

(G) It shall be unlawful for any person to set, maintain or use a trap net or fyke net in any part of the Sandusky bay and more specifically west of an imaginary line running from the northern most point of Sandusky pier light which is 41° 30' north and 82° 40' 5" west to Shafer's dock on Marblehead which is 82° 43' west and 41° 31' 3" north.

(H) It shall be lawful to place, locate, pull, or maintain a seine in Sandusky bay from one hour before sunrise on Sunday to one half hour after sunset on Sunday, during the commercial fishing season as set in rule 1501:31-3-01 of the Administrative Code, Commercial Fishing Seasons. It shall be unlawful to set, place, locate, or maintain a seine in Sandusky bay and the inland fishing district during the nighttime from one hour after sunset until one hour before sunrise.

(I) Except as otherwise provided, it shall be unlawful for any person, from March first to December tenth each year, to set, maintain, or use a trap net or fyke net within one half mile of any structure, breakwater, pier, or jetty associated with any federally maintained navigation channel in lake Erie.

(J) It shall be unlawful for any person, from March first to December tenth each year, to set, maintain, or use a net or other fishing device within one-quarter mile of the following defined reefs:

(L) A violation of this rule is a violation of sections 1533.48 and 1533.55 of the Revised Code insofar as they are applicable.

(M) All definitions set forth in rule 1501:31-1-02 of the Administrative Code shall apply to this rule.