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Environmental Economic Accounting Strategic Questions Walter Radermacher

Environmental Economic Accounting Strategic Questions Walter Radermacher. UNCEEA meeting New York June 2006. The English Plan. Depending on the wind, the striker’s position may vary…. The German Plan. Radical, efficient, unstoppable… (ball’s speed may reach 297 km/h). The Italian Plan.

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Environmental Economic Accounting Strategic Questions Walter Radermacher

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  1. Environmental Economic Accounting Strategic QuestionsWalter Radermacher UNCEEA meeting New York June 2006

  2. The English Plan Depending on the wind, the striker’s position may vary…

  3. The German Plan Radical, efficient, unstoppable… (ball’s speed may reach 297 km/h)

  4. The Italian Plan Iron defense, small ideas in midfield, passes to striker..and…Penalty

  5. The Brasilian Plan … no comments!

  6. The Danish Plan Stay at home and watch the others on TV!…...

  7. Official Statistics and Knowledge based Society statistics Mandelbrot set* • http://de. wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandelbrot-Menge

  8. Mandelbrot area after 8 steps of magnification statistics

  9. The Kondratieff cycles and their basic innovations information technology petrochemistry automobile electrical engineering chemistry railway steel industry steam engine cotton gross domestic product boom long-term growth path recession 1. KONDRA- TIEFF 2. KONDRA- TIEFF 3. KONDRA- TIEFF 4. KONDRA- TIEFF 5. KONDRA- TIEFF 6. KONDRA- TIEFF 1790 1850 1910 1940 1970 2000 Source: chart based on Vahs, D., Burmester, R.: Innovationsmanagement. Stuttgart: Schäffer-Poeschel, 1999, p.6. Kondratieff cycles: A glance into the future?

  10. Consistency RelevanceMeasurability Environmental Economic Accounting: Element of Official Statistics

  11. Goal functions – theoretical consistency • Capital approach (keep capital intact, sustainable development, Hicksian income) Focus: Stocks • Material flow approach (entropy, environmental impacts of flows, cross-border/cross-generation effects, productivity)Focus: Flows • Combination, modular + multidimensional approach

  12. Global Ecology material m Global Economy m National e energy e i i Economy information Rest of the world National Economy Goods Services Capital Labour Point of perspective: Flows and systems

  13. Characteristics of EEA • Data for economic and political decisions, not for technical checks and regulations • Part of official statistics: macro-economic level, ex post and with reference to accounting periods • Average pressure is recorded rather than incidents, extreme situations, etc. • Value judgements must not be a (internal) part of statistical information

  14. Complexity, Feed-Back Effects, Missing Knowledge • Causes and effects in a driving forces-pressures–state of the environment–response chain can only partly been quantified • Potential risk of all substances / materials that are transported, used and emitted is not sufficiently known • Permanent and detailed monitoring of every parcel of land or ocean will remain an illusion • Provide “adequate” knowledge for the decision making processes combined with a clearly described quality (metadata).

  15. System boundaries

  16. Ecosystem inputs Broad sustainability considerations Water Flows do not exist Total materialthroughput Natural resources Sand & gravel Volume of flow (in tonnes) Resource efficiency & recycling Waste & emissions minimisation Carbon Fossil fuels Products Timber Paper Nutrients Steel Residuals Aluminium Fertiliser Chemicals policy PVC Solvents Heavy metals Pesticides Hazardous chemicals Flows are of minor interest Potential specific environmental impact (per tonne of material) OECD work on Material Flows and Resource Productivity What do we mean by “materials”?

  17. The micro-macro gap • Emerging effects: macro-level is more than an aggregation of micro-elements • Structural changes include feed-back effects, accumulation etc.; extrapolation of tools designed for marginal and continuous effects has limitations • Toolkit for valuation on local or project level (e.g. CBA) is not necessarily applicable for comprehensive valuation on macro level • The size of environmental depletion/degradation: marginal or more?

  18. Quality of statistical information • Code of Ethics, SDDS, Code of Practice etc. • Expectation of the public, statistics = a matter of trust, GDP = sharp knife in the hands of children? • Share of work with partners • Communication / metadata

  19. Communication of EEA: The role in decision making Wrong decisions because of external effects GDP

  20. Communication of EEA: The role in decision making Wrong Decisions because of external effects GDP Optimal decisions Valuation of external effects and adjustment of GDP etc. Adjustment approach

  21. Communication of EEA: The role in decision making Wrong decisions because of external effects GDP Alternative political decisions GDP etc. of alternative development paths Alternative political decisions GDP etc. of alternative development paths Alternative political decisions GDP etc. of alternative development paths Alternative political decisions GDP etc. of alternative development paths Alternative political decisions GDP etc. of alternative development paths Modelling approach

  22. Scope and context of environmental accounting

  23. Thank you for your attention! www.destatis.de

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