Environmental policy and legal basis
The environmental accounts have developed over recent decades into an important instrument of European environmental, climate and sustainability policy. Their continuous development reflects the growing demand for robust information to support the design, implementation and evaluation of environmental policy measures.
At the European and international levels, policy strategies, legal requirements and statistical standards provide the framework for the compilation and use of environmental accounts. In particular, they support the implementation of the European Green Deal, the European Union’s Eighth Environment Action Programme, as well as other initiatives in the fields of climate protection, resource efficiency, the circular economy and biodiversity conservation.
The following sections provide an overview of the key political, legal and institutional foundations of environmental accounts at the national, European and international levels.
Political Background
In Austria, the further development of the national accounts to incorporate environmental aspects was already supported in 1996 through a resolution of the Austrian National Council. In the same year, Eurostat and the statistical offices of the Member States agreed on the gradual development of environmental accounts.
An important impetus at the European level was provided by the European Commission’s 2009 communication “GDP and Beyond”. The communication highlighted the need to complement the measurement of societal progress with environmental and sustainability considerations.
European Legal Framework
The legal basis for European environmental accounts is provided by Regulation (EU) No 691/2011 on European environmental economic accounts. The objective of the regulation is to provide harmonised data that link environmental and economic information, thereby creating a foundation for evidence-based policymaking.
The regulation initially comprised three modules:
- Air Emissions Accounts
- Environmental Taxes
- Material Flow Accounts
With Regulation (EU) No 538/2014, the scope was expanded to include the following modules:
- Environmental Protection Expenditure Accounts (EPEA)
- Environmental Goods and Services Sector (EGSS)
- Physical Energy Flow Accounts (PEFA)
Subsequently, the scope of European environmental accounts was further extended and adapted to emerging European priorities in the fields of climate action, biodiversity and sustainable resource use. Additional legal acts expanded the framework to include:
- Forest Accounts
- Ecosystem Accounts
- Environmental Subsidies and Similar Transfers
These developments provide a more comprehensive statistical representation of biodiversity, natural capital and the ecological transformation of the economy.
European Green Deal and Sustainability Policy
Environmental accounts provide an essential data foundation for the implementation and evaluation of key European policy initiatives. These include in particular:
- the European Green Deal,
- the European Climate Law,
- the European Union Biodiversity Strategy,
- the Circular Economy Action Plan, and
- the EU’s Eighth Environment Action Programme.
By linking economic and environmental data, environmental accounts enable the monitoring of progress in decarbonisation, resource efficiency and the sustainable use of natural resources.
They also support the measurement of progress towards the objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
International Framework
At the international level, environmental accounts form part of the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) developed by the United Nations.
The SEEA Central Framework established the first international statistical standard for integrating environmental and economic data within a common accounting framework.
In addition, SEEA Ecosystem Accounting was developed to enable the systematic recording of ecosystems, their condition and the ecosystem services they provide. This makes biodiversity and natural capital statistically measurable.
Today, SEEA serves as the internationally recognised reference framework for the compilation of environmental accounts.
International Initiatives
The further development of environmental accounts is closely linked to international initiatives aimed at measuring sustainable development.
Particular significance is attached to the report of the Stiglitz-Sen-Fitoussi Commission, which highlighted the limitations of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as the sole indicator of societal well-being. The Commission’s recommendations emphasise the need to better integrate environmental, social and sustainability aspects into economic reporting.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has also promoted the integration of economic and environmental information for many years. Key areas of focus include resource efficiency, material flows and the sustainable use of natural resources.
Environmental accounts therefore make an important contribution to “Beyond GDP” approaches that seek to measure societal progress beyond traditional economic growth indicators.
Further Development and Future Perspectives
The further development of environmental accounts at the European level is guided by the European Strategy for Environmental Accounts (ESEA). Key priorities for the coming years include improving data quality, increasing the use of innovative data sources and further developing indicators for assessing sustainable development.
To support the growing demand for information related to the European Green Deal, the EU’s Eighth Environment Action Programme, as well as biodiversity and circular economy policies, the scope of environmental accounts continues to be expanded. Particular emphasis is placed on enhancing information related to natural capital, biodiversity and the environmental impacts of economic activities. These developments strengthen the evidence base for monitoring long-term changes in natural capital and natural resources.
The ongoing development of environmental accounts is also supported by evaluations of their practical use. In its 2019 report, the European Court of Auditors concluded that the strategic direction, policy relevance and timeliness of European environmental accounts should be further strengthened. In particular, it recommended aligning environmental accounts more closely with the information needs of policymakers and expanding their use in environmental and economic decision-making processes.
The subsequent expansion of the European legal framework and the increasing integration of environmental accounts into European sustainability, climate and biodiversity policies underline their growing importance as a basis for evidence-based policymaking.
Against the backdrop of the ecological transformation of economies and societies, environmental accounts will continue to provide a key foundation for assessing environmental impacts, economic developments and policy measures in the years ahead.
UNSD: System of Environmental and Economic Accounting Central Framework (SEEA 2012)
UNSD: SEEA Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EA, international statistical standard, 2021)
UNSD: System of Environmental and Economic Accounting - Applications and Extensions
EU: Communication of the Commission on GDP and beyond - Measuring progress in a changing world
EU: European Strategy for Environmental Accounts 2024-2028
EU: 8th Environment Action Programme
EU: Communication on the monitoring framework for the 8th Environment Action Programme
Stiglitz-Sen-Fitoussi Report: Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress