Bycatch Reduction Devices—Gulf of America and South Atlantic
Learn about bycatch reduction device requirements in the Southeast.
A bycatch reduction device (BRD) is any gear or trawl modification designed to allow finfish to escape from a shrimp trawl. BRDs are required for use in shrimp trawls fished shoreward of the 100-fathom (183-meter) depth contour in the Gulf of America* (formerly Gulf of Mexico), and within the EEZ of the South Atlantic region. BRDs may have different capabilities according to different fishing conditions, and having a wide variety of BRDs for use in the fisheries allows fishermen greater flexibility to choose the most effective BRD for the specific local fishing conditions.
For information regarding the BRDs, please contact:
NOAA Fisheries' Pascagoula Lab Harvesting Technology Branch
3209 Frederic Street Pascagoula, Mississippi 39568
Phone: (228) 762-4591
List of Certified BRDs
- Fisheye
- Jones Davis
- Modifies Jones Davis
- Cone Fish Deflector Composite Panel
- Square Mesh Panel Composite Panel
For more information on these BRDs and BRD manuals, check out the Louisiana Sea Grant Better BRDs webpage.
Instructions and Pictures
For information regarding the BRDs, please contact:
NOAA Fisheries' Pascagoula Lab
Harvesting Technology Branch
3209 Frederic Street
Pascagoula, Mississippi 39568
Phone: (228) 762-4591
Certification of BRDs
To request certification of new BRDs, please contact:
NOAA Fisheries' Galveston Lab
4700 Avenue U
Galveston, Texas, 77551-5997
Phone: (409) 766-3500
*Executive Order 14172, “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness” (Jan. 20, 2025), directs that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America. Gulf of America references in this website refer to the same area as the Gulf of Mexico in the applicable regulations under 50 CFR parts 216–219, 222–226, and 600–699. The name change did not result in any changes to, and had no effect on the applicability or enforceability of, any existing regulations. This website continues to use “Gulf of Mexico” when quoting statutes, existing regulations, or previously published materials.