Article 1. Declaration Of Policy And Definitions of California Health And Safety Code >> Division 104. >> Part 6. >> Chapter 5. >> Article 1.

The Legislature finds and declares that the public health interest requires that the people of this state be protected from adulterated shellfish grown and harvested in state waters for sale to the public and for introduction into interstate commerce. This protection is a matter of statewide concern and the purpose of this chapter is to establish uniform sanitation standards for the growing waters, harvesting, shucking, packing, repacking, and handling of shellfish and shellstock intended for human consumption.

Unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions set forth in this article govern the construction of this chapter.
  (a) "Shellfish" means native or nonnative bivalve mollusks, which include oysters, rock scallops, clams, and mussels, either fresh or frozen, and either shucked or in the shell.
  (b) "Shellstock" means shellfish which remain in their shells.
  (c) "Growing area" means any offshore ocean, coastal estuarine, or freshwater area that may be classified by the department for natural shellfish growth or artificial shellfish propagation and includes open seawater systems.
  (d) "Approved area" means a shellfish-growing area not adversely affected by sewage or other wastes.
  (e) "Conditionally approved area" means a shellfish-growing area that may be occasionally affected by sewage or other wastes.
  (f) "Prohibited area" means a shellfish-growing area not certified because of its proximity to a waste discharge or because the area is influenced by other detrimental environmental factors.
  (g) "Restricted area" means a shellfish-growing area subjected to a limited degree of pollution which makes it unsafe to harvest shellfish for direct marketing but where harvesting for relaying or depuration may be permitted.
  (h) "Other wastes" means wastes, such as, but not limited to, animal, industrial, radiological, and agricultural wastes which would render shellfish unsafe or unfit for human consumption.
  (i) "Department" means the State Department of Health Services.
  (j) "Director" means the State Director of Health Services.
  (k) "Person" includes any individual, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, and association.
  ( l) "Closed area" means an area that the shellfish taken therefrom have been declared to be unsafe or unfit for human consumption.