Closed area · Isle of Man Government
Bottom-towed gear prohibited
Isle of Man Sea Fishing Licence · in force since 2012-07-10
A CAUGHT review has read the instrument behind this closure, rather than relying on the summary published with the boundary. Where the two differ, the instrument governs; this reading was made on 2026-09-02.
'It is prohibited to use bottom towed fishing gear in the mud closed areas.' Separately: presence inside the mud closed areas at under 4.0 knots is prohibited unless fishing with authorised gear, where 'authorised gear-types' expressly EXCLUDES bottom towed fishing gear and any baited trap other than Nephrops creels.
It is prohibited to use bottom towed fishing gear in the mud closed areas. It is prohibited to be present within the mud closed areas at a speed of less than 4.0 knots unless the vessel is fishing using authorised gear-types. “authorised gear-types” means any gear-type except – a. bottom towed fishing gear; and b. any form of baited traps other than Nephrops creels (Note: see subsection 14 re
Summary as published in the source dataset, shown for comparison. A dataset paraphrase can be narrower or wider than the instrument it summarises, and finding out which is the work above.
Vessels are named only on cases that read CAUGHT and have been examined by a reviewer. Every other case is linked without a name: most are resolved, and naming a boat on a page about the closure would carry an accusation the assessment does not support.
What a case here means. A CAUGHT case is a reason to look, not a verdict. Each one is judged on three independent factors — was it fishing, here and then; what gear does the vessel actually use; and what was prohibited there at that time — and the weakest of the three decides. Most cases are resolved.
Boundaries and rule summaries come from the published datasets named at the foot of this page and can contain errors; the legislation is the authority. If you believe this closure is described wrongly, tell us at contact@caught.org.uk.
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