S.L. 549.24 Art. 2Scope and interpretation.

(1) These regulations concern the quality of fresh waters and apply to those waters designated by the competent authority as needing protection or improvement in order to support fish life.

(2) These regulations shall not apply to waters in natural or artificial fish ponds used for intensive fish farming.

(3) The aim of these regulations is to protect or improve the quality of those running or standing fresh waters which support or which, if pollution were reduced or eliminated, would become capable of supporting fish belonging to indigenous species offering a natural diversity or species the presence of which is judged desirable for water management purposes by the relevant competent authorities of any State.

(4) For the purposes of these regulations: "competent authority" means the Department for Environment Protection under the guidance of the Director for Environment Protection and such other body or person as the Minister responsible for the environment may by order in the Gazette prescribe and different bodies or persons may be designated as the competent authority for different provisions and different purposes of these regulations;

"cyprinid waters" means waters which support or become capable of supporting fish belonging to the cyprinids (Cyprinidae), or other species such as pike (Esox perch (Perca lucius), fluviatilis) and eel (Anguilla anguilla); "natural enrichment" means the process whereby, without human intervention, a given body of water receives from the soil certain substances contained therein;

"salmonid waters" means waters which support or become capable of supporting fish belonging to species such as salmon (Salmo trout (Salmo grayling (Thymallus solar), trutta), thymallus) and whitefish (Coregonus).