System of Environmental-Economic Accounting

1. System of Environmental-Economic Accounting Working Party on National Accounts (Paris, 25-28 October 2011) Herman Smith United Nations Statistics Division

2. Short history of the SEEA • SEEA-1993 • Published as a work in progress report • Focused mostly on environmentally-adjusted aggregates and integration of the environment in monetary accounts • Chapter 8 of agenda 21 recommended its implementation in countries • Resistance of NSOs to develop environmentally-adjusted aggregates • SEEA 2003 • Issued as a best practices document • In a number of cases, not a single option is presented • Major step forward in linking physical and monetary • SEEA 2012 • Need to develop a standard for environmental-economic accounting • Based on the SEEA 2003 and country experience • High policy demand – Green Economy/green growth, Rio +20

3. Development of the revised SEEA • Being developed under the auspices of the United Nations Committee on Environmental-Economic Accounting established by the UN Statistical Commission • London Group on Environmental Accounting has contributed substantively (e.g. discussion and solving issues, etc.) • The idea is the SEEA is comprised of three parts: Part 1 on the Central Framework, Part 2 on Experimental Ecosystem Accounts and Part 3 on Extensions and Applications • Issue list for the SEEA was discussed by the London Group

4. Development of the revised SEEA • Outcome papers reflecting the decision of the London Group were drafted and circulated for global consultation (until end of 2010) • Recommendations on the issues were adopted by the UN Statistical Commission (UNSC) in February 2011 • Draft Chapters 1-6 constituting the central framework will be out for global consultation this week • Chapters 1-6 will be submitted for adoption by the UNSC in March 2012 • Experimental Ecosystem Accounts and Extensions and Applications will present the state of the art and will not be statistical standards.

5. List of issues - 21 • Issue 1. Harmonization of MFA with SEEA concepts • Issue 2. Definition and classifications of physical flows • Issue 3. Linking energy flow accounts, balances and basic energy statistics and emission inventories and accounts • Issue 4. Renewable energy • Issue 5. Environment industry • Issue 6 -7-8. Environmental taxes and subsidies and permits • Issue 9. Classification of natural resource management expenditures • Issue 10-11. Classification of assets and categorization of mineral and energy resources • Issue 12. Valuation of assets • Issue 13-14. Recording of natural resource depletion for a non-renewable and renewable resource • Issue 15. Decommissioning costs • Issue 16. Recording of water in artificial reservoirs • Issue 17. Recording of losses • Issue 18. Valuation of water (deleted) • Issue 19. Land • Issue 20. Recording of soil and its valuation • Issue 21. Forest accounts

6. Energy balances Other water statistics Systems frameworks SEEA-Water SEEA-Energy Output frameworks Intermediate frameworks e.g. IRWS e.g. IRES Input frameworks Compilation Material Compilation Material Cross functional frameworks ISIC, CPC, Asset Classification, Class. of Environmental Activities, Class. of Physical Flows etc Data Data Quality Assessment Frameworks Metadata and documentation (e.g. SDMX) The SEEA and supporting suite of publications SEEA

7. SEEA and SNA • The SEEA maintains close linkages to the accounting structure and concepts of the SNA but…… • It has graduated to a system in its own right • Central framework is very close to the SNA (satellite system of the SNA) • Ecosystem accounts look at the environment from a different perspective in its capacity to provide services to the economy

8. SEEA implementation • Energy information is high on international agenda • Rio+20 • Green Economy/Green Growth • Sustainable Consumption and Production • Resources efficiency/productivity • Climate Change • Beyond GDP measures • On the international statistical agenda • Busan Action Plan for Statistics being discussed • Multi-regional Input-Output Models • Sustainable Development Goals (post MDG agenda)

9. UNSC requested the UNCEEA to discuss implementation of the SEEA UNCEEA discussed a paper on the implementation in June prepared by Statistics Netherlands Suggestion to develop a minimum set of accounts for environmental accounting London Group to be engaged in supporting the implementation through vetting training and compilation materials, etc. SEEA and implementation

10. What’s next? • SEEA Central framework (Chapters 1-6) To be submitted for adoption to UNSC in March 2012 • SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounts • UNSD/World Bank and EEA have been given the task to lead their development • Draft list of issues has been prepared and discussed at the London Group in September – still open for comments • Expert Group comprising experts from statistical, scientific and ecological economics community has been established • Expert meeting to discuss the issues will take place in London (5-7 December 2011) hosted by ONS and DEFRA • Not a standard but expected to be submitted to UNSC in 2013 • SEEA Extension and Applications • Scope and content agreed by the UNCEEA • In the process of identifying authors for different topics

11. Thank you