With an approved Relay Permit, shellstock can be harvested from a growing area classified as Restricted or a Conditionally Approved in the closed status and placed in a growing area classified as Approved or Conditionally Approved in the open status. Relayed shellstock must be held in an Approved or Conditionally Approved growing area for sufficient time under adequate environmental conditions to allow the reduction of pathogens to levels that are safe for human consumption.
An operation must fill out a Relay Plan of Operations (Word) and submit it to the Department of Health for approval.
Types of Shellstock Relay
There are two lengths of time that an operation can be approved to relay shellstock. They are:
- Greater than sixty (60) days.
- Greater than fourteen (14) days.
Shellstock relayed for at least fourteen (14) days, but less than sixty (60) days, must complete a validation study by the Washington State Public Health Laboratory. This study is to ensure that shellstock are purging bacteria levels sufficiently to re-harvest for human consumption.
- Separate validation studies must be completed for both the warm season and the cold season.
- Warm season is from May 1 through October 31.
- Cold season is from November 1 through April 30.
- Fourteen (14) day relay permits expire after twelve (12) years.
Shellstock relayed for greater than sixty (60) days do not need a validation study.
Relay Requirements
- The Restricted site and the Approved site that shellstock are moved to must be listed on your Harvest Site Certificate issued by the Department of Health.
- The operation is not allowed to harvest from a closed or Restricted area until the Relay Plan of Operations is approved, and if a validation study was done, that it passed and demonstrated that the shellfish from the original area and the relayed area are safe for human consumption.
- Containers holding relayed shellstock must be designed and constructed to allow free flowing water.
- The relayed shellstock must be staked or the area clearly marked.
- Shellstock harvested from restricted or closed areas must have a tag containing all information required in Chapter X Section .05 of the National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP) and must include specific language on the tag detailing in Red, that the shellstock is RESTRICTED.
- When harvesting from a Restricted or Conditionally Approved in the closed status, a copy of your Harvest Site Certificate showing your Relay permit must be in your possession.
Record Keeping
If more than one harvested lot of shellstock is held at a relay site, the identity of each harvest lot shall be maintained throughout the storage process.
Records must be kept for each lot of relayed shellstock, which includes the original harvest date from the Restricted or Conditionally Approved in the closed status, and the re-harvest date from the relay site. Records will be reviewed during your operation’s inspections. These records must be complete and accurate and maintained by the operator for at least 3 years.
More Resources
National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP) - See Chapter V.
Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 246-282-032 - Relay Permit