Balanced harvest has been proposed to reduce fishing impact on ecosystems while simultaneously maintaining or even increasing fishery yield. The concept has attracted broad interest, but also received criticisms. In this paper, we examine the theory, modelling studies, empirical evidence, the legal and policy frameworks, and management implications of balanced harvest. The examination reveals unresolved issues and challenges from both scientific and management perspectives. We summarize current knowledge and address common questions relevant to the idea. Major conclusions include: balanced harvest can be expressed in several ways and implemented on multiple levels, and with different approaches e.g. métier based management; it explicitly bridges fisheries and conservation goals in accordance with international legal and policy frameworks; modelling studies and limited empirical evidence reveal that balanced harvest can reduce fishing impact on ecosystem structure and increase the aggregate yield; the extent of balanced harvest is not purely a scientific question, but also a legal and social choice; a transition to balanced harvest may incur short-term economic costs, while in the long-term, economic results will vary across individual fisheries and for society overall; for its application, balanced harvest can be adopted at both strategic and tactical levels and need not be a full implementation, but could aim for a “partially-balanced” harvest. Further objective discussions and research on this subject are needed to move balanced harvest toward supporting a practical ecosystem approach to fisheries.

中文翻译：

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平衡收获：概念、政策、证据和管理影响

平衡捕捞已被提议以减少捕捞对生态系统的影响，同时保持甚至增加渔业产量。这个概念引起了广泛的兴趣，但也受到了批评。在本文中，我们研究了平衡收获的理论、模型研究、经验证据、法律和政策框架以及管理影响。该检查从科学和管理的角度揭示了未解决的问题和挑战。我们总结了当前的知识并解决了与该想法相关的常见问题。主要结论包括： 平衡收获可以通过多种方式表达并在多个层面实施，并采用不同的方法，例如基于工艺的管理；根据国际法律和政策框架，它明确地将渔业和保护目标联系起来；建模研究和有限的经验证据表明，平衡捕捞可以减少捕捞对生态系统结构的影响并提高总产量；平衡收获的程度不仅是一个科学问题，也是一个法律和社会选择；向平衡捕捞过渡可能会产生短期经济成本，而从长远来看，经济结果将因个体渔业和整个社会而异；就其应用而言，平衡收获可以在战略和战术层面采用，不需要完全实施，但可以以“部分平衡”收获为目标。需要对这一主题进行进一步的客观讨论和研究，以推动平衡捕捞支持实用的渔业生态系统方法。