Natural capital accounts for the North Sea: Suggestions for additions and valuation of ecosystem services

Natural capital accounts (NCA), also known as ecosystem accounts, is an approach for systematically measuring and monitoring the condition of ecosystems and corresponding ecosystem services over time, with the aim to support research, decision-making and planning. It is argued that natural resources will be more sustainably used and managed when the relationship between ecosystems and economic and other human activities is considered. In a reflection of the Statistics Netherlands (CBS) report Natural capital accounts for the North Sea: The physical SEEA EEA accounts (CBS, 2019), the objective of this report is to identify and improve ecosystems, conditions and physical accounts for the North Sea as well as to identify methods and sources to calculate values (prices) of ecosystem services provided, in preparation for the North Sea natural capital accounts.