Abstract
In the European Union, the Water Framework Directive provides a roadmap for achieving good water status and sustainable water usage, and a framework for the information, types of analysis, and interventions required by the Member States. Lack of previous knowledge in, and understanding of, interdisciplinary approaches across European countries has led to applications of corrective measures that have yielded less than favourable results. The natural capital paradigm, the assessment and monitoring of the value of natural capital, has the potential to convey information on the use of water resources and improve the connection between implemented measures and changes in the status of the resources, thus enhancing the effectiveness of policy interventions. In this paper, we present the natural capital accounting methodology, adapted to the requirements of the Directive, and demonstrate its application in two European catchments. Using economic methods, the asset value of two ecosystem services was estimated and associated with changes in water status due to policy instruments. Findings demonstrate that the asset value of water for residential consumption and recreational purposes fluctuates from year to year, influenced by current and future uses. Consequently, managing authorities should consider both current and emerging pressures when designing interventions to manage water resource sustainably.
Highlights
The natural environment is consistently undervalued in decision-making
Concerning the asset value of water abstraction, as it increases steeper in the Broadland Rivers, it could be said that the dependence of the economy on this specific service is higher in the UK case study, which could mean that the pressures on water from residential consumption will most likely be more intense in the Broadland Rivers in the future
As shown in earlier sections, developing natural capital accounts requires a great amount of data, such as detailed information on ecosystem services supply, assessment of the status of ecosystem assets, and an identification of the uses of the ecosystem services as well as their value
Summary
The natural environment is consistently undervalued in decision-making. besides the inherent value of natural resources to human wellbeing, a wide range of government policies including investments in infrastructure and economic growth are influenced by the value of natural resources and their availability [1]. It is increasingly recognized that environmental degradation diminishes the capacity of the planet to sustain economic development [2,3,4]. Reduction in the delivery or loss of ecosystem services results in economic losses, which, given the current monitoring schemes in Europe, are hardly considered by national economic policies. Maintaining natural capital, i.e., ecosystems and their services, is fundamental to human welfare and development. Given the pressures and threats on European ecosystems, Europe risks losing natural capital without valuing what is being lost [6]. Methods of monitoring and assessing the importance of such services to a society and its economy have increasingly gained the interest of governments in the last two decades [7], making the case for environmental protection
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