Carl Obst, Editor, UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) - Presentation at the United Nations Association of Australia (Victorian Division) Corporate Sustainability Leadership Seminar ‘Corporate Water Valuation: Accounting for Risks and Impacts, Valuing Ecosystem Services’ held on Monday 29 April 2013, in partnership with National Australia Bank Held in support of the International Year of Water Cooperation, seminar addressed some of the challenges and opportunities associated with corporate water valuation, as well as local actions and global tools and initiatives in this area. It highlighted some examples of what Australian businesses are doing, alongside government and NGOs, to measure and manage their risks, impacts and dependencies on water. Guest Speakers & Panelists included: • Rosemary Bissett, Head of Sustainability, Governance & Risk, Enterprise Risk, National Australia Bank • Matt Kendall, General Manager, Planning and Evaluation Group, National Water Commission • Carl Obst, Editor, UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) • Jean-Michel Seillier, Regional Manager Victoria, Veolia Water • Gioia Small, Regional Manager Sustainability and Vintrepreneur, Treasury Wine Estates • Michael Spencer, Secretary, Water Stewardship Australia and Fellow, Department of Business, Law and Taxation, Monash University Facilitator: • Rob Gell, Environmental Entrepreneur, Chairman of UNESCO Western Port Biosphere, and Chair of Wildlife Victoria More information available at: http://www.unaavictoria.org.au/education-advocacy/masterclasses/corporate-water-valuation-seminar/

1. SEEA: THE INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD FOR ENVIRONMENTAL-
ECONOMIC ACCOUNTING
UPDATE ON PROGRESS AND THE
TREATMENT OF WATER
Carl Obst
Editor, UN System of Environmental-Economic
Accounting (SEEA)
29 April, 2013
UNAA Seminar on Water Valuation
Melbourne, Australia

2. SEEA IN A NUTSHELL
 SEEA Central Framework reflecting
international statistical standards approved in
February 2012
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/White_cover.pdf
 Accounting approach
 Measures stocks and flows in integrated manner
 Aligned with System of National Accounts
 Concepts applicable at national and sub-national
levels
 Broad and inclusive approach using both physical
and monetary data

3. COVERAGE OF THE SEEA CENTRAL
FRAMEWORK
 Natural resource accounting
 Stocks, natural growth, extraction and depletion
 Physical flow accounting
 Energy, water, emissions, waste
 Accounting for environmental activities
 Environmental protection, Production of environmental goods
and services, Environmental taxes and subsidies
 Land accounting
 Changes in land use and land cover

4. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS AND FUTURE
PLANS
 New guidelines: SEEA Experimental Ecosystem
Accounting
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/doc13/BG-SEEA-
Ecosystem.pdf
 Potential uses: SEEA Applications & Extensions
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/doc13/BG-SEEA-AE.pdf
 Global SEEA Implementation program
 Co-ordination of an ecosystem accounting
research agenda

5. SEEA’S GROWING CONNECTIONS
 Corporate accounting and reporting
 PUMA, The B Team, TEEB for Business, GIST
 Accounting and reporting standards (e.g. IIRC, GRI)
 Financial markets & risk analysis, UNEP-FI & NCD
 Academic community
 Economists, Physical scientists, Geo-spatial community
 IPBES, CBD, IPCC, Ecosystem Services Partnership, ESPA
 International sustainable development initiatives
 Including development of Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) and the post 2015 agenda + OECD, UNEP, World
Bank (incl WAVES & Genuine saving), GGKP, GGGI, …
 NGOs – WWF, Conservation International, Nature
Conservancy, World Resources Institute, …
 Politicians : GLOBE network
 National initiatives

6. SEEA: WHERE IS “WATER” RECORDED?
 Production account (GDP, value added)
 Follow abstraction, distribution and treatment across
economy from all water sources
 Flows of water and associated economic activity
 Monetary terms only actual payments to other units

7. RECORDING WATER (CONT)
 Income accounts (saving)
 Annual payments for water rights (akin to royalties)
 Capital accounts
 Water infrastructure (dams, pipes, etc)
 Long term purchase of water rights

8. RECORDING WATER (CONT)
 Balance sheets
 Stocks and changes in stocks of water resources

9. AN ECOSYSTEM ACCOUNTING APPROACH
 Define relevant ecosystem flows and price them
to obtain value of water: possible flows/services
 Abstraction (incl for hydropower)
 Water purification / flood protection
 Habitat and breeding grounds
 Cultural services: fishing, tourism, scenic views
 Transportation related services
 Difficulty of separating flows/services relevant to
water from other parts of ecosystem
 Possible way forward is to focus on changes in
ecosystem condition and relevant dependencies
 Valuation of ecosystem degradation

10. FINAL THOUGHTS
 Single numbers tend not to aid decision making
 Challenge is to determine the right questions and
structure relevant information
 For system “assets” knowing the relevant flows is
insufficient, assessing the change in stock and its
condition is also needed.