15A NCAC 10C .0215. REPLACEMENT COSTS OF WILDLIFE RESOURCES - FISH

(a)  Replacement Costs Distinguished.  As it applies to fishes the term "replacement costs" must be distinguished from the "value" of the fish concerned.  Except in cases where fish may lawfully be sold on the open market, as with commercially reared species, the monetary value of the specimens cannot be determined easily.  The degree of special interest or concern in a particular species by the public, including not only anglers, but conservationists and those to whom the value of fishes is primarily aesthetic, cannot be measured in dollar amounts.  The average cost per fish legally taken by anglers including travel and lodging, fishing equipment and bait, excise taxes on equipment, licenses and other fees, may fairly be estimated.  This too, however, is a reflection of the value of existing fishery resources rather than a measure of the cost of their replacement.  Thus, the relative value of fish species should be considered only as they may bear on the necessity or desirability of actual replacement.

(b)  Factors to be Considered.  The factors which should be considered in determining the replacement costs of resident species of fishes that have been taken, injured, removed, harmfully altered, damaged, or destroyed include the following:

(1)           whether the species is classified as endangered or threatened;

(2)           the relative frequency of occurrence of the species in the state;

(3)           the extent of existing habitat suitable for the species within the state;

(4)           the dependency of the species on unique habitat requirements;

(5)           the cost of improving and maintaining suitable habitat for the species;

(6)           the cost of capturing the species in areas of adequate populations and transplanting them to areas of suitable habitat with low populations;

(7)           the cost of propagating and rearing the species in a hatchery and the cost of transporting them to areas of suitable habitat with low populations;

(8)           the availability of the species and the cost of acquisition for restocking purposes;

(9)           the cost of those species which, when released, have a probability of survival in the wild;

(10)         the ratio between the natural life expectancy of the species and the period of its probable survival when, having been reared in a hatchery, it is released to the wild;

(11)         the change in the value of money as reflected by the consumer price index.

(c)  Costs of Replacement.  Based on the factors listed in Paragraph (b) of this Rule, including the June, 1980, consumer price index of 247.6 percent of the 1967 base, the following fishes are listed with the estimated replacement cost:

 

Species                                                   Weight                                                    Replacement Cost

Striped bass and                                  up to 5 lbs.                                            $25/fish

Bodie bass                                            5 lbs. to 10 lbs.                                     $20/lb.

10 lbs. to 20 lbs.                                   $25/lb.

Over 20 lbs.                                           $30/lb.

 

White bass                                            up to 2 lbs.                                            $10/fish

Over 2 lbs.                                             $10/lb.

 

Largemouth bass                                 Up to 2 lbs.                                            $10/fish

2 lbs. to 7 lbs.                                        $10/lb.

Over 7 lbs.                                             $20/lb.

 

Smallmouth bass and                         Up to 2 lbs.                                            $10/fish

other black bass                                   2 lbs. to 4 lbs.                                        $10/lb.

Over 4 lbs.                                             $20/lb.

 

Walleye                                                  Up to 2 lbs.                                            $10/fish

2 lbs. to 5 lbs.                                        $10/lb.

Over 5 lbs.                                             $20/lb.

 

Muskellunge                                         Up to 1 lb.                                             $30/fish

Over 1 lb.                                               $30/lb.

 

Sunfish                                                  All Sizes                                 $5/fish

 

Crappie                                                  All Sizes                                 $10/fish

 

Catfish (Channel, Blue                       Up to 1 lb.                                             $5/fish

and Flathead)                                       1 lb. to 20 lbs.                                       $5/lb.

Over 20 lbs.                                           $10/lb.

 

Trout (Wild)                                          Up to 7 in.                                             $10/fish

7 in. to 13 in.                                         $15/fish

Over 13 in.                                            $30/lb.

 

Trout (Hatchery)                                 7 in. to 13 in.                                         $5/fish

Over 13 in.                                            $10/lb.

 

All Other Game Fish                            All Sizes                                 $5/fish

 

All Other Non-Game Fish                   All Sizes                                 $2.50/fish

(d)  Cost of Investigations.  The factors to be considered and the computation of costs are as specified in 15A NCAC 10B .0117.

 

History Note:        Authority G.S. 113-134; 113-267;

Eff. December 1, 1993.