Ecosystem accounting – technical aspects

1. Ecosystem accounting – technical aspects Zvolen, Slovakia. 13th June, 2012 J-L. Weber, P. Crouzet, A. Berger, C. McGuire, D. Abdul, A. Simon, C. Schroeder, O. Gomez

2. Outline • Ecosystem accounting technical aspects • Thematic areas: • Land • Water • Carbon • Biodiversity • Conclusions

3. Ecosystem accounting technical aspects

4. What is ecosystem accounting in technical terms? • Data and methods to solve a key question: how much? (or how many?)  main interest of policy makers • Can be applied in different fields • Based on a combination of spatial analysis methods (GIS), and statistical methods • Main objective: combine data from different sources • Modular approach, allows combining data with different geographic and thematic resolutions • Easy to reproduce methodology  allows national and regional implementations (example, State of Environment Report in Andalusia 2006, land use chapter done with accounting methodology – Andalusia is 86,000 sq Km and 8 million inhabitants)

5. Elements • Data (hectares of land cover, organic carbon contents, m3/sec, …) are related to a reference grid. In our case is 1Km, but resolution can be changed  INSPIRE reference grids  http://inspire-forum.jrc.ec.europa.eu/pg/pages/view/1814/geographical-grid-systems • Why reference grid? Modularity and data integration  from spatial to statistical  used in several domains (example AFOLU-CAPRI data by the JRC and University of Bonn) • How to do it?  fuzzy logic, statistical approaches • Better resolution: aggregate to the grid • Less detailed resolution: disaggregate to the grid • Analysis units (regions, natural sub basins, classification of elevation, …) are also referred to the grid

6. Diagram (example)

7. Process

8. Ecosystem accounting • Being implemented this year • Version 0 database just finished  elements for easy querying are being built now; after they are ready  synthesis • 4 pillars: • Land use/land cover • Water: • Quantity (at sub basin level) • Quality (more descriptive for the time being) • Organic carbon (biomass): • Forest • Agriculture • Soil • Biodiversity (qualitative indicators)

9. Objectives of this session • Interactive • For each theme: • How we did with the data we had available • Example of results (remember: done with European perspective  issues like data homogeneity) • Which thematic areas are of more interest to Slovakia? • Discuss how to improve and implement those from the national perspective

10. Thematic areas: land

11. Land use/land cover • Concept and first implementation developed in 2005-2006 • Based on Corine Land Cover • Dealing with land cover changes as land cover flows • Fuzzy logic elements: • Corilis • Dominant Landcover Types • Potential national improvements based on better land cover data (spatio-temporarily and/or thematically)

12. Land cover: Slovakia Only 5% of the territory changed in 2000-2006 77% of them are internal conversions

13. Consumption vs. Formation

14. Let’s interact… • Questions? • Do you want to see it live? • Could this part be improved nationally with better data? • Changes in ownership regime

15. Thematic areas: water

16. Water quantity accounts • Based on ECRINS  published on EEA SDI yesterday: http://sdi.eea.europa.eu • Integration of WFD reported rivers  existing version on http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/ecrins/library/relation_ecrins/national_reference/wise-main-rivers-v1-draft-april-2012 , new version coming by November • Technical approach: water drainage model, calibrated with observations from monitoring stations • Result: Monthly stream flow by river segment, for 2001-2010, that can be aggregated to small catchments • Status: work being finished by a consultant this month • In the ecosystems accounts: preliminary results at sub basin level

17. Sub basins in Slovakia

18. Water accounts conceptual model • SEEAW concept : water balances in a strict accounting framework so to link the physical and economic worlds • The accounting spatial unit: ‘territory of reference’, made of ‘statistical units’ • Analysis carried out across the inland resource system (natural assets) and the economy • Exchanges between the different components: rain on soil that receives irrigation; rivers fill reservoirs used for abstraction and supply; etc. • Applies to the physical catchments

20. Green/blue water

21. Water quality / land cover characteristics • Qualitative approach (as quality is surrogate of quantity and quality data) • For the time being: • Relationship: length of river by land cover classes and Dominant Land Cover • Breakdown by assessment by Member States in WFD art. 13 (ecological and chemical status – the former including a more detailed breakdown) • In the future: more data on quality (better temporal grain needed in stations’ quality data)

22. Let’s interact… • Questions? • Is further developing water accounts in the interest of Slovakia? Quantity? Quality? • It would be in the interest of EEA to have better temporal grain on water quality data

23. Thematic areas: organic matter (carbon)

25. Methodology • Kept very simple • Ecosystems approach • Define compartments (soil, forest, …), and flows • Calculate C stocks and flows based on peer reviewed/good practices literature methods • Disaggregate regional statistics to 1km grid, and inside the 1km grid using simple operations • Calculate C contents based on peer reviewed/best practices literature

27. Disaggregation method

28. By products

29. Forest • Harmonized regional European database on: • Forest inventories (with species and stand structure) • Timber harvest (from Eurostat) • Disaggregation of forest inventory statistics to Corine land cover forest types • Disaggregation of timber harvest statistics using remote sensing (changes in phenology) data.

30. Examples Forest biomass stocks: starting point (forest inventory) Wood harvest statistics (source Eurostat)

31. Forest balance (stock – harvest + growth)

32. Re-aggregate by other units Example: forest stock in 2006 by sub basins in Slovakia

33. Agriculture • Disaggregation of agriculture production statistics (Eurostat) • Grazing based on livestock statistics • Manure application in agricultural fields based on: • JRC nitrogen application maps • and our estimation of livestock in the field • Permanent vs annual crops

34. Examples Cereals Vineyards

35. Livestock disaggregation from FAO (0 to 100 dairy cow equivalent) Livestock in field

36. Soil • Biomass estimation based on JRC soil map (organic content) • Balance based on the impact of grazing, manure application, and application of sludge to suitable soils

37. Soil carbon, 2006

38. Let’s interact… • Questions? • Issues with data? • Would it be interesting to further develop some of these aspects from the national perspective?

39. Thematic areas: Biodiversity

40. Approach • Based on synthetic indicators, considering: • Land cover • Fragmentation • Reported data on biodiversity (status of population and trends, based on expert judgement) • Qualitative, made quantitative considering surfaces

41. Landscape ecosystem potential (integrity): the EEA nlep indicator – 2000 (observed)

42. Landscape ecosystem potential (integrity): the EEA nlep indicator – 2010 (now-casting)

43. Change in nlep, 2000 – 2010, 0-100 scale

44. Species biodiversity index: “Art.17” reporting to the EC on Populations past/present trends (up to 2006)

45. Species biodiversity index: “Art.17” reporting to the EC on Future prospects (after 2006)

46. Landscape bio-capacity 2000

47. Lansdcape bio-capacity 2010

48. Ecosystem Capital Accounts: Landscape/Biodiversity Capacity Account

49. Ecosystem Capital Accounts: Landscape/Biodiversity Capacity Account

50. Change in landscape bio-capacity 2000-2006, by sub-basins