§ 113-132. Jurisdiction of fisheries agencies.
§ 113‑132. Jurisdictionof fisheries agencies.
(a) The MarineFisheries Commission has jurisdiction over the conservation of marine andestuarine resources. Except as may be otherwise provided by law, it hasjurisdiction over all activities connected with the conservation and regulationof marine and estuarine resources, including the regulation of aquaculturefacilities as defined in G.S. 106‑758 which cultivate or rear marine andestuarine resources.
(b) The WildlifeResources Commission has jurisdiction over the conservation of wildliferesources. Except as may be otherwise provided by law, it has jurisdiction overall activities connected with the conservation and regulation of wildliferesources.
(c) Notwithstanding theprovisions of this Article, this Subchapter does not give the Marine FisheriesCommission or the Wildlife Resources Commission jurisdiction over mattersclearly within the jurisdiction vested in the Department of Agriculture andConsumer Services, the North Carolina Pesticide Board, the Commission forPublic Health, the Environmental Management Commission, or other division ofthe Department regulating air or water pollution.
(d) To the extent thatthe grant of jurisdiction to the Marine Fisheries Commission and the WildlifeResources Commission may overlap, the Marine Fisheries Commission and theWildlife Resources Commission are granted concurrent jurisdiction. In cases ofconflict between actions taken or regulations promulgated by either agency, asrespects the activities of the other, pursuant to the dominant purpose of suchjurisdiction, the Marine Fisheries Commission and the Wildlife ResourcesCommission are empowered to make agreements concerning the harmonioussettlement of such conflict in the best interests of the conservation of themarine and estuarine and wildlife resources of the State. In the event theMarine Fisheries Commission and the Wildlife Resources Commission cannot agree,the Governor is empowered to resolve the differences.
(e) Those coastalfishing waters in which are found a significant number of freshwater fish, asagreed upon by the Marine Fisheries Commission and the Wildlife ResourcesCommission, may be denominated joint fishing waters. These waters are deemedcoastal fishing waters from the standpoint of laws and regulations administeredby the Department and are deemed inland fishing waters from the standpoint oflaws and regulations administered by the Wildlife Resources Commission. TheMarine Fisheries Commission and the Wildlife Resources Commission may makejoint regulations governing the responsibilities of each agency and modifyingthe applicability of licensing and other regulatory provisions as may benecessary for rational and compatible management of the marine and estuarineand wildlife resources in joint fishing waters.
(f) The granting ofjurisdiction in this section pertains to the power of agencies to enactregulations and ordinances. Nothing in this section or in G.S. 113‑138 isdesigned to prohibit law‑enforcement officers who would otherwise havejurisdiction from making arrests or in any manner enforcing the provisions ofthis Subchapter. (1965,c. 957, s. 2; 1973, c. 476, s. 128; c. 1262, ss. 18, 28, 38; 1977, c. 771, s.4; 1979, c. 830, s. 1; 1987, c. 641, s. 5; 1989, c. 281, s. 3; 1997‑261,s. 109; 2007‑182, s. 2.)