Measuring what ecosystems do for us

Ecosystems contribute essential services to the economy and society. These include the provision of food, filtration of air and water, pollination, climate regulation, protection against extreme weather events such as heat waves and flooding, and many more. The ability of ecosystems to supply these services depends on their extent (‘size’) and condition (‘health’).

Today a new report “Accounting for ecosystems and their services in the European Union” unravels the flows of services that forests, rivers, grasslands, wetlands and other ecosystems supply. It shows how restoring degraded ecosystems has the potential to double nature’s contribution to the EU economy and society.

Based on 2012 data, EU’s ecosystems generated an annual flow of selected seven ecosystem services – crop pollination, crop provision, timber provision, water purification, flood protection, carbon sequestration and recreation in high-value natural areas – at the value of € 172 billion. Forests delivered almost half of this supply. In 2019, the economic value provided by a wider set of ecosystem services in the EU amounted to € 234 billion. This value is comparable to the gross value added of agriculture and forestry combined. Water purification is the ecosystem service with the highest aggregated value, followed by nature-based recreation.

For more information

• Ecosystem accounting is an emerging field that aims to provide an internationally agreed guidance to measure and record changes in ecosystems and ecosystem services in a consistent and comparable manner. In the context of the European Green Deal, the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 is calling for the establishment of an international natural capital accounting initiative.
• Led by Eurostat, the European Commission and the European Environment Agency have established an Integrated System of Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services Accounting for the EU – INCA. INCA contains three types of accounts: extent, condition and ecosystem services. The first two track the changes in natural capital: the total area of ecosystems and their condition or integrity.
• Accounting for ecosystems and their services in the European Union
• Integrated System of Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services Accounting (INCA)
• Biodiversity Strategy for 2030
• System of Environmental Economic Accounting – Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EA)