This dataset depicts the boundaries of the Tilefish Gear Restricted Areas for the NOAA Fisheries Service’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO). These data include boundaries for the following Regulated Areas:

• Oceanographer Canyon Gear Restricted Area

• Lydonia Canyon Gear Restricted Area

• Veatch Canyon Gear Restricted Area

• Norfolk Canyon Gear Restricted Area

Because GIS projection and topology functions can change or generalize coordinates, these GIS files are considered to be approximate representations and are NOT an OFFICIAL record for the exact regulated area boundaries. For information on the official legal definition refer to the Use Constraints in the metadata documentation.

Purpose of the data: Beginning in 2010 and in response to mounting requests for digital depictions of NMFS Regulated Areas in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Waters (Regulated Areas), the NMFS Greater Atlantic

Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO) Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Committee launched a project to standardize the development, publication and regular updating of GIS files depicting Regulated Area boundaries. This dataset is a product of that initiative. This dataset was created to depict the boundaries of NMFS Regulated Areas in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Waters (Regulated Areas) only. For information on the proper use of the dataset refer to the Use Constraints metadata section.

Data Version: published 20140925