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Stock taking of progress in Ecosystem/ Natural Capital Accounts & data gaps

Statistics Mauritius. Workshop on Ecosystem/ Natural Capital Accounts Statistics Mauritius, Port Louis, April 26 th 2013. Stock taking of progress in Ecosystem/ Natural Capital Accounts & data gaps. Jean-Louis Weber Consultant

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Stock taking of progress in Ecosystem/ Natural Capital Accounts & data gaps

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  1. Statistics Mauritius Workshop on Ecosystem/ Natural Capital Accounts Statistics Mauritius, Port Louis, April 26th 2013 Stock taking of progress in Ecosystem/ Natural Capital Accounts & data gaps Jean-Louis Weber Consultant Member of the European Environment Agency’ Scientific Committee Honorary Professor, University of Nottingham jlweber45@gmail.com

  2. Findings of the inception mission (19-30 April) The project is firmly steered by Statistics Mauritius which is involved at high level and devotes important manpower to its implementation. The many visits to government or scientific agencies have been very positive, with no exception. A clear interest for the subject has been expressed everywhere, revealing deep understanding of the sustainability issues for the country. The willingness to contribute with data and expertise has been expressed by all.

  3. Priority themes & issues which can be illustrated by ecosystem capital accounts During the visits, priority environmental issues to be considered when implementing ecosystem/ natural capital accounts have been mentioned. Although concerns are in majority, several processes of ecosystem restoration have been presented. This confirms the policy relevance of the ecosystem capital accounting project in the Mauritius context. Without precise order, a first list established after one week of visits reads: • Urbanisationon wetlands or/and blocking drains  flood risk • Deforestation on slopes (protection forests)  increased risk of flood, landslides • Mechanization of sugar cane operation  destruction of drains between previous small parcels  flood risk .../…

  4. Continued • Degradation of forest (and no replantation after felling) prior to conversion to construction e.g on the coast  loss of forest and biodiversity, landscape artificialisation • Forests (remaining…) have essential regulation role in islands (increase precipitation, regulate water flow, sequestrate carbon)  needs for reforestation considering in particular adaptation to climate change. • Adaptation to climate change, food security  need ecosystem resilience • Excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides  contamination of groundwater • Pollution of lagoons by tourists boats  degradation of coral reefs • Degradation of lagoons  threat for tourism • Restoration of coral reefs  restoration costs • Rehabilitation of forests (public)  investment in Nature (costs known)

  5. Continued Replantation of mangroves  coastline protection Urban sprawl on coast (tourism) and inland  landscape fragmentation, loss of biodiversity Replacement of chemicals by compost (from urban waste) by small sugar cane planters  soil conservation, regeneration Development of “special sugar” plantation  more sustainable agriculture, restoration & enhancement of ecosystem capital Complete harvest of sugar cane and straw, use of bagasse for biofuels  depletion of soil carbon Values linked to bio-prospecting (e.g. genes/molecules in sponges for cancer healing) to be assessed independently  to secure fair return to the country (the ABS paradigm)

  6. Visits to government and scientific organizations (1) Statistics Mauritius: organization of the consultant mission; overview of the ecosystem accounting process and of data requirements Ministry of Housing and Lands, Cartography section: geographical data available, in particular LAVIMS and derived maps MID: presentation of the conceptual model (ecological balance sheet)and discussion of its policy relevance Meeting with Dr Prakash Deenapanray-Initiator of the mission on ecosystem accounting: presentation of the model and discussion on perspectives of coupling it with macro-economic multi-sector modelling Forestry Service: information on forests stocks and species

  7. Visits to government and scientific organizations (2) Mauritius Meteorological service (MMS): background meteorological historical data, methods for upscaling/downscaling data to drainage basins Water Resource Unit (WRU) : rivers gauging stations, 10 years data, vector files of drainage basins and rivers Meeting with the Statistician of Tourism and Leisure: hotels by municipalities, capacity, time series; ways of estimating tourist frequentation by coastal zones; possible link with the tourism satellite account (2005, 2010) Ministry of Environment : broad exchange; data on special interest natural areas Mauritius Oceanography Institute : data and expertise on coastal lagoons ecology

  8. Visits to government and scientific organizations (3) Agricultural Research and Extension Unit (AREU) : crops & agriculture practices (out of sugar), soil map (FAO) and other CLEW background data National Parks and Conservation Service: data on biodiversity, forest rehabilitation costs Ministry of Agro Industry and Food security : data on agriculture University of Mauritius, GIS Unit: analysis of the accounts Mauritius Research Council : exchange with the scientific community, scientific support, expertise, validation

  9. Next steps Continue data collection Explore possibilities to produce a land cover change map/data base geo-database Next consultant mission between July and September-October for starting integrating data and producing first accounts Stepwise: geographical infrastructure and statistical units  populate with data and statistics as soon as they are made available. Simplified methodologies to achieve first results quickly; need scientific expertise to avoid traps due to data gaps Suggestion 1: a steering committee with interested organizations Suggestion 2: propose to the two main economic sectors (sugar cane and tourism) that they compile their own ecological balance sheet

  10. Useful links An experimental framework for ecosystem capital accounting in Europe, J.-L. Weber, EEA Technical report No 13/2011 (EN) http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/an-experimental-framework-for-ecosystem Annex to the EEA Technical Report No 13/2011 http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/e_c_a_fast_track_provisional_repository/background_documents/seca_ecu_model-annex_tables_to_simplifed_framework Ecosystem accounting and the cost of biodiversity losses, The case of coastal Mediterranean wetlands, EEA Technical report No 3/2010 (EN) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/cube/ecosystem_coastal/tech3-2010-med-wetland-f Land accounts for Europe 1990–2000, Towards integrated land and ecosystem accounting, EEA Report No 11/2006 (EN) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/land_account_wwwpdf Mise en place expérimentale de comptes du capital-écosystème en Europe, présentation de J.-L. Weber, 14e colloque de l’Association de Comptabilité Nationale, 6, 7 et 8 juin 2012 (FR) http://www.insee.fr/fr/insee-statistique-publique/colloques/acn/pdf14/acn14-session5-3-texte.pdf Les Comptes du Patrimoine Naturel, INSEE 1986, (FR) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/background-papers-and-publications/comptes_patrimoine_naturel_insee_1986 Implementation of Simplified Ecosystem Capital Accounts for Europe, presentation by J.-L. Weber, UNSD International Seminar, New York, 27-29 November 2012(EN) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/00_recent_docs/unsd27-29nov2012_ecosystem_capital_accounts_ateea_jlweber The making of the biodiversity/species index for LEAC/Ecosystem capital accounts in Europe, using the « Art.17 » reporting data, Expert Meeting on Ecosystem Accounts Melbourne, Australia, 16-18 May 2012, J.-L. Weber*, E. Ivanov+, R. Spyropoulou*, O.Gomez* (* European Environment Agency + University of Nottingham) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/e_c_a_fast_track_provisional_repository/background_documents/eea_biodiversity_index_for_accounting Land cover accounts in Burkina Faso, presentation by G. Jaffrain, EEA, 2007 (EN) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/cube/land_cover/presentation_leac_burkina_faso_ppt EVOLUTION DE L’OCCUPATION DES TERRES ENTRE 1992 ET 2002 AU BURKINA FASO, Ministère de l’Agriculture de l’Hydraulique et des Ressources Halieutiques, 2006 (FR) http://projects.eionet.europa.eu/leac/library/cube/land_cover/bdot_rapport_burkina_faso_2007

  11. Jean-Louis Weber jlweber45@gmail.com Skype: jean-louis.weber

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