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The cost of natural capital consumption: Accounting for a sustainable world economy

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  • Bartelmus, Peter

Abstract

The System for integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting (SEEA) has been criticized in this journal for ignoring the benefits of ecosystem services for human well-being. This paper argues that extended national accounts should not attempt measuring economic welfare. Rather, they could and should assess the environmental sustainability of economic activity as the cost of natural capital consumption. The global application of SEEA concepts and methods demonstrates the feasibility of international green accounting. For the world economy, sustainability costs run to about 3trillion US$ or 6% of world GDP. Large variations at national and regional levels suggest that conventional economic indicators may significantly overstate economic progress in some parts of the world. Data gaps and lack of data comparability affect these first estimates. National and international statistical services should be more aggressive in greening the national accounts. More prudent and more sustainable economic policies might be the result.

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  • Bartelmus, Peter, 2009. "The cost of natural capital consumption: Accounting for a sustainable world economy," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(6), pages 1850-1857, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:68:y:2009:i:6:p:1850-1857
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    12. Aniruddh Mohan & Nicholas Z. Muller & Akshay Thyagarajan & Randall V. Martin & Melanie S. Hammer & Aaron van Donkelaar, 2020. "The Growth of Nations Revisited: Global Environmental Accounting from 1998 to 2018," NBER Working Papers 27398, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    14. Roman, Philippe & Thiry, Géraldine, 2016. "The inclusive wealth index. A critical appraisal," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 185-192.
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    16. Zhang, Xiaohong & Wu, Liqian & Zhang, Rong & Deng, Shihuai & Zhang, Yanzong & Wu, Jun & Li, Yuanwei & Lin, Lili & Li, Li & Wang, Yinjun & Wang, Lilin, 2013. "Evaluating the relationships among economic growth, energy consumption, air emissions and air environmental protection investment in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 18(C), pages 259-270.
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