1 / 7

Measuring ecosystems goods and services: Canadian Project

Learn about the institutional arrangements, policy demand, and information available and needed for the Canadian project on measuring ecosystem goods and services.

scostello
Download Presentation

Measuring ecosystems goods and services: Canadian Project

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Measuring ecosystems goods and services: Canadian Project UNCEEA Art Ridgeway, Statistics Canada June 12, 2012

  2. Outline • Institutional arrangements • Policy demand • Information available and needed • Implementation 12/06/12 Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada 2

  3. Institutional arrangements • Statistics Canada received “venture capital” funding for development of prototype ecosystem accounts in collaboration with and for use of policy departments • Environment, Natural Resources, Fisheries and Oceans, Parks, Agriculture and Agrifood • National statistical office seen to bring experience in accounting, standards, classifications and SNA • Seen as a necessity to harmonize existing data and concepts around ecosystem services and valuation • Measuring Ecosystem Goods and Services (MEGS) project started in May 2011 with • Interdepartmental DG steering committee (6 members) • Interdepartmental Working Committee (12 members) • Six Interdepartmental Working Groups (50 members) 12/06/12 Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada 3

  4. Policy demand • Many demands from resource departments: • Monetary values of ecosystems and their services to support discussions of protection, conservation, climate change, sustainability, pollution prevention, land use change... • Opportunity to raise argument beyond “environment” versus “economy” to understand the real contribution of ecosystems to human well being, sustainability and “green growth” • Less interest from finance, industry and health departments • Although recognition of importance of ecosystem services (e.g., to business, health, security, etc.) 12/06/12 Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada 4

  5. Policy demand (2) • Concerns about applicability of SEEA Part 2: • Environment Canada would prefer • Broader approach to valuation (i.e., include components of consumer surplus) • Explicit treatment of ecosystems that economy and well-being depend on, sometimes indirectly, as wealth • Recognition of role of landscapes in providing services • Better link between ecosystem services and well-being (rather than only economic value) • Canadian Forest Service concerned about • Non-UNFCCC approach to carbon accounts • Alternative definitions of “forest” 12/06/12 Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada 5

  6. Information available and needed • Wealth of information exists but largely ad hoc and sectoral • For example, Ecosystem Status and Trends Report (Environment Canada, 2010) focuses on biophysical characteristics of ecozones • Opportunities to create: • Common classifications of ecosystems and services • Common spatial framework (land cover, with more detail on certain ecosystem types such as wetlands) • Common approaches to valuation • Coherent indicators of ecosystem quality • Linkages with existing sustainability indicators • Some information incomplete for Canada: • Wetlands, species ranges, ecosystem quality measures 12/06/12 Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada 6

  7. Implementation • Creation of a “community of practice” one of the most important achievements • Knowledge developed will contribute to policy through experienced people and knowledge base • Much work still at case study and prototype stage • Not ready for “official statistics” • Intend to seek funding to continue to build more complete accounts as a statistical product that could serve a variety of users 12/06/12 Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada 7

More Related