Applications of ecosystem accounting for policy and management

Abstract

My studies focus on applying ecosystem accounting to environmental policy and management. The System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) is the international standard for natural capital and ecosystem accounting, which organises information on the environment and the interactions between the environment and the economy. The SEEA has two main parts, the SEEA Central Framework (SEEA-CF) and the SEEA Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EA). While SEEA accounts are increasingly produced, few examples of SEEA applications exist. My thesis investigates SEEA policy and management applications at the regional and national levels, in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and China, respectively. The applications include land planning and management, water management, water pricing, and assessment of market-based instruments (MBIs) for achieving sustainability. These investigations led to theoretical and methodological advances in ecosystem accounting, making SEEA more suitable for specific policy and management contexts. The thesis has four papers (Chapters 2-5), an introduction (Chapter 1), and a conclusion (Chapter 6). Chapter 2 presents land and ecosystem extent accounts for the ACT and links them to ACT policies for land planning, ecosystem management, urban forests, and protected areas. The account production and linking to policies highlighted the need for regular ecosystem data collection and mechanisms to integrate accounting into environmental policy and management. It also identifies opportunities for research to support specific policy areas, including water policy and management. Chapters 3 and 4 examine how ecosystem accounts can be applied to ACT water policy and management. Chapter 3 developed physical accounts for water-related ecosystem services for the ACT based on the land and ecosystem extent accounts (Chapter 2). Ecosystem services models were compared and used in account production for the ecosystem services of water supply, water filtration, and sediment control. The models resulted in wide-ranging estimates but were suitable for accounts that can inform ACT policies related to water security, water quality, and soil erosion. The results are relevant beyond the ACT because the models are commonly used and the accounts inform global water management principles. Chapter 4 builds on the physical accounts for water-related ecosystem services (Chapter 3) to produce monetary accounts for ACT and applies them to water pricing. Values were estimated using SEEA-EA recommended methods, and different accounting treatments of water flows were compared. The estimates varied by valuation method, dry or wet years, and accounting treatment. The accounts show the value of water-related ecosystem services used by water suppliers and were used to develop a pricing formula that reveals the opportunity costs and water scarcity not fully considered in ACT water pricing. The water pricing principles in the ACT are widely used, and the results have relevance beyond the ACT. Chapter 5 examines how SEEA can support the assessment of MBIs effectiveness in achieving sustainable development. An information system was designed consisting of primary data, SEEA-based accounts, and indicators and tested using China's value realisation of ecosystem products (VREP) policy. The study emphasised the importance of consistent and regular data for accounting to inform policy assessment and the proposed three-step process for the design and monitoring of MBIs beyond the VREP. In conclusion, the SEEA reveals information that is often overlooked in environmental policy and management. Data availability constricts account production, and the choice of models, valuation methods, and accounting treatments all impact results. Identifying policy needs is the first step to integrating account into the policy. Designing accounts with specific policy uses in mind and increasing decision-makers' awareness of accounting and is likely to increase SEEA's use. Show more