What is maximum sustainable yield?

Maximum sustainable yield is the maximum level at which a resource can be exploited without depleting it. According to the National Estuarine Research Reserve, such a stock must remain at above half of its full carrying capacity in order to maintain maximum exploitation.

Maximum sustainable yield considers how much of any stock should be harvested without exceeding the level at which the remaining stock would reproduce to return its full carrying capacity in the shortest time possible. In some industries, such as fishing, this concept is important because individuals or organizations may harvest a stock below its maximum sustainable yield in order to realize short-term profit, but the harvest harms local industry overall.