Article 2 Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply in addition to those laid down in Article 3 of Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98^f1, Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009^f2 and Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013:

1. (1)

   ‘Range of F_MSY’ means a range of values provided for in the best available scientific advice, in particular by the International Council on the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), where all levels of fishing mortality within that range result in maximum sustainable yield (MSY) in the long term with a given fishing pattern and under current average environmental conditions without significantly affecting the reproduction process for the stock in question. It is derived to deliver no more than a 5 % reduction in long-term yield compared to the MSY. It is capped so that the probability of the stock falling below the limit spawning stock biomass reference point (B_lim) is no more than 5 %;

2. (2)

   ‘MSY F_lower’ means the lowest value within the range of F_MSY;

3. (3)

   ‘MSY F_upper’ means the highest value within the range of F_MSY;

4. (4)

   ‘F_MSY point value’ is the value of the estimated fishing mortality that with a given fishing pattern and under current average environmental conditions gives the long-term MSY;

5. (5)

   ‘Lower range of F_MSY’ means a range that contains values from MSY F_lower up to F_MSY point value;

6. (6)

   ‘Upper range of F_MSY’ means a range that contains values from F_MSY point value up to MSY F_upper;

7. (7)

   ‘B_lim’ means the spawning stock biomass reference point provided for in the best available scientific advice, in particular by ICES, below which there may be reduced reproductive capacity;

8. (8)

   ‘MSY B_trigger’ means the spawning stock biomass and, in the case of Norway lobster stocks, the abundance reference point provided for in the best available scientific advice, in particular by ICES, below which specific and appropriate management action is to be taken to ensure that exploitation rates in combination with natural variations rebuild stocks above levels capable of producing MSY in the long term;

9. (9)

   F1‘enactment’ has the meaning given by section 20(1) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.