Transcript Policy context DG ENV - Eionet Projects

Policy context and user
expectations
Laure Ledoux
European Commission, DG ENV, Biodiversity Unit
Developing an EU Ecosystem Accounting System – focus
on ecosystem asset and ecosystem service accounts,
EEA, 1-2 October 2015
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7EAP
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The integration of the economic value of ecosystem services into
accounting and reporting systems at EU and national level by 2020
will result in better management of the EU’s natural capital'
Work to develop a system of environmental accounts, including
physical and monetary accounts for natural capital and ecosystem
services, will need to be stepped up.
This supports the outcome of Rio+20, which recognises the need for
broader measures of progress to measure well-being and
sustainability to complement gross domestic product.
ACTION: Developing and applying alternative
indicators that complement and go beyond GDP to
monitor how sustainable our progress is and continuing
work to integrate economic indicators with environmental
and social indicators, including natural capital
accounting.
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Council conclusions on greening the
European semester and the Europe
2020 Strategy – mid-term review
Underlines the need for further “greening” the
European Semester and the Europe 2020
Strategy by:
• […]
• f) Calling on the Commission to step up work in close
cooperation with Member States,on developing a
system of valuation of natural resources, and of
biodiversity and the ecosystem services it provides –
EU natural capital – in line with 7th EAP guidance, with
a view to developing indicators, including for
monitoring economic progress, and contribute to the
development of environmental accounts.
EU 2020 Biodiversity Strategy and MAES
Are Europe’s
ecosystems in good
shape to continue
delivering essential
ecosystem services?
Can we value the
flow of ecosystem
services from
ecosystems to
society?
Which drivers of
change increase or
decrease the
delivery of
ecosystem services?
We need to map and assess ecosystems and their services
MAES overall conceptual framework
EU 2020 Biodiversity Strategy:
Target 2
Action 5: Improve knowledge of
ecosystems and their services in
the EU
Member States, with the assistance of the
Commission, will map and assess the state of
ecosystems and their services in their national
territory by 2014, assess the economic value
of such services, and promote the integration
of these values into accounting and reporting
systems at EU and national level by 2020.
MAES and NCA: timing and sequence
2011
Mapping &
Assessing
2011
2020
2014
Valuing
Accounting
2020
2014
Mapping & Assessing
Valuing
Accounting
MAES reference
frame linking
ecosystem
condition to
ecosystem
services
MAES high level conference and
other developments
• MAES high level conference –highlighted
political importance of NCA, whilst
recognising methodological challenges.
Relevance much beyond biodiversity policy.
• Importance of maintaining link between
biophysical assessment and biophysical and
monetary accounts
• Need both aggregated accounts and
spatially disaggregated accounts – main
added value of accounts
• Need explicit link between ‘cross-cutting’
accounts e.g. Carbon, Land and Water, and
ecosystem condition accounts, following
MAES categorisation
Ecosystem accounts
Simplified accounts
Forests
Water
Carbon
Land
Species diversity
Nutrients
Marine
Grassla
nd
Etc.
Key policy issues
We need to:
• measure changes in our natural capital
stock and what impacts it has on our
economy and society.
• assess the extent and condition of
ecosystems that is needed so that they
can carry on delivering essential
services to our economy and society
What do we need natural capital
accounts for?
• Develop meaningful Macro-indicators, both
physical and monetary:
• EU 2020 and greening the European Semester
• Implementation of 2030 sustainable development
agenda in the EU
• Better take into account how different sectors
benefit from and impact on natural capital
• Better manage ecosystems by taking account
a wider range of values, and assessing
synergies and trade-offs amongst ecosystem
services
• The private sector – ensure consistency with
national accounts
• International dimension; WAVES and UN-SEEA
Thank you for your attention
For more details on Biodiversity Strategy and related actions:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/index_en.htm
Ecosystem Assessment Platfom:
http://biodiversity.europa.eu/ecosystem-assessments
WAVES:
http://www.wavespartnership.org/waves/
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