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1. Whenever a sea turtle is sighted in the net, all reasonable efforts shall be made to rescue the sea turtle before it becomes entangled in the net.

2. No sea turtle shall be hauled from the water by a fishing line attached to, or entangled upon, the body of a sea turtle.

3. If a sea turtle is entangled during net roll, the net roll shall be stopped as soon as the turtle comes out of the water; the turtle shall be disentangled without injuring it before resuming the net roll.

4. If, in spite of the measures taken, a sea turtle is accidentally brought on board the vessel and is alive and active, or dead, the sea turtle shall be released as quickly as practicable.

5. If a sea turtle is brought aboard the vessel and is comatose or inactive, resuscitation shall be attempted in accordance with Section C. B. Longline safe handling and release 1. When practicable, and if the operator or crew members on board are trained, comatose sea turtles shall be brought on board immediately.

2. Upon sighting a sea turtle, the vessel and line reel speed shall be slowed and the vessel direction adjusted to move toward the sea turtle, minimising tension on the line.

3. No sea turtle shall be hauled from the water by a fishing line attached to or entangled upon the body of a sea turtle.

4. If a sea turtle is too large or is hooked in such a manner as to preclude safe boarding without causing further damage or injury to the sea turtle, line clippers shall be used to clip the line and remove as much line as possible prior to releasing the sea turtle.

5. If a sea turtle is observed to be hooked or entangled by longline gear during hauling operations, the vessel operator shall immediately cease hauling operations until the sea turtle has been removed from the longline gear or brought on board the vessel.

6. If a sea turtle is hooked externally or a hook is fully visible, the hook shall be removed from the sea turtle as quickly and carefully as possible. If a hook cannot be removed from the sea turtle (e.g. ingested or in roof of mouth), the line shall be cut as close to the hook as possible.

7. Live sea turtles shall be returned to the sea after handling in the following manner:

(a) putting the vessel engine in neutral gear so that the propeller is disengaged and the vessel is stopped, and releasing the sea turtle away from deployed gear; and (b) observing that the sea turtle is safely away from the vessel before engaging the propeller and continuing operations.

8. If the sea turtle brought aboard the vessel is comatose or inactive, resuscitation shall be attempted in accordance with Section C. C. Resuscitation for a sea turtle on board 1. When handling a sea turtle, attempts shall be made to hold the animal by the shell, avoiding the head and neck region, and the flippers.

2. It shall be strived to remove and/or disentangle any foreign items from the sea turtle, such as any plastic items, netting or embedded hooks, etc.

3. The sea turtle shall be placed on its bottom shell (plastron) so that the sea turtle is right side up, safely isolated and immobilized on a cushioned surface, such as an automobile tire without a rim, a boat cushion or a coil of rope. The primary purpose of the cushioned surface is to elevate the sea turtle from the deck to assist in restraining it. Elevate its hindquarters at least 6 inches (15 cm) for a period of 4 up to 24 hours. The degree of the elevation depends on the size of the turtle; greater elevations are needed for larger sea turtles. Periodically, rock the sea turtle gently left to right and right to left by holding the outer edge of the shell (carapace) and lifting one side about 3 inches (8 cm) then alternate to the other side. Gently touch the eye and pinch the tail (reflex test) periodically to see if there is a response.

4. Sea turtles being resuscitated shall be shaded and kept damp or moist but shall under no circumstances be placed into a container holding water. A water-soaked towel placed over the head, carapace and flippers is the most effective method to keep a sea turtle moist.

5. Sea turtles that revive and become active shall be released over the stern of the boat only when fishing gear is not in use (i.e. not actively being set or hauled), when the engine gears are in neutral position, and in areas where they are unlikely to be recaptured or injured by vessels.

6. Sea turtles that fail to respond to the reflex test or fail to move within 4 hours (up to 24 hours, if possible) shall be returned to the water in the same manner as that for actively moving sea turtles.