Ecosystem accounting as a component of managing Ukraineʼs recovery on the basis of sustainable development

Abstract

In the context of global and national goals of sustainable development, the data of the traditional accounting system is not enough to assess the benefits that society receives from ecosystems and their services, as well as the analysis of anthropogenic impact on the natural environment. In this regard, the international communityʼs efforts formed the concept of ecosystem accounting, the data of which characterize the importance of ecosystems for national economies and humanity. The article aims to reveal the conceptual foundations, objects and accounts of ecosystem accounting and identify the factors that determine the need for its implementation as an essential component of managing the recovery of Ukraine based on sustainable development. The research is based on the method of analogy and abstract thinking. The research hypothesis – the feasibility of introducing ecosystem accounting in Ukraine – was proven using the methods of analysis and synthesis, induction, deduction and comparison based on the results of previous studies on the assessment of the effectiveness of ecosystem accounting concepts in some countries and information requests from the government, investors and international partners regarding the state of ecosystems in Ukraine in wartime. The article reveals the principles that are the basis for the development of national concepts of ecosystem accounting. The key objects of ecosystem accounting are ecosystems as a set of assets that form natural capital and ecosystem services, i.e. unique public goods. The structure of ecosystem accounts was presented, accumulating the information necessary to measure natureʼs contribution to the economy and human well-being. This approach allows taking into account the many advantages of nature, which are often not valued in the market in the traditional accounting system and, accordingly, are ignored when making economic decisions. The factors determining the need to develop a national concept of ecosystem accounting and its practical implementation as soon as possible have been identified. The flexibility of the ecosystem accounting concept, which consists of the possibility of forming ecosystem accounts according to the specifics of the countryʼs natural capital, taking international principles as a basis, will allow for an objective assessment of the national wealth and ensure its restoration, rational distribution and accumulation.

Keywords

• ecological accounting
• ecosystem accounts
• natural capital
• ecological and economic statistics
• system of national accounts
• non-financial reporting
• ecological and economic analysis
• econometric modelling