SEEA-EA ecosystem accounts as an opportunity for standardization of ecosystem services assessment and its intertwining with life cycle assessment

During the last decade there has been an increasing interest in the development of national ecosystem accounts, which has led to the recent adoption of the statistical framework for Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EA) of the United Nations. SEEA-EA is a system composed of five types of accounts which are developed integrated: ecosystem extent, ecosystem condition, ecosystem services flow (biophysical and monetary), and monetary ecosystem asset. Its clear systems of rules and the integration of anthropocentric, ecocentric, intrinsic and utilitarian perspectives offer a great opportunity for standardization of ecosystem assessments, and ecosystem services assessments from local to international levels. In the case of anthropogenic ecosystem types, e.g., urban ecosystems, ecosystem accounts also present an opportunity window for integrating life cycle assessment (LCA) to achieve ecosystem condition accounts that take into account global and local changes. In this presentation, we introduce initial works on SEEA-EA urban ecosystem accounts for EU to reflect on the potential value of SEEA-EA ecosystem accounts for standardisation of ecosystem services assessments. We also introduce current gaps of urban ecosystem accounts, common for other anthropogenic ecosystems, which could be minimised or tackled via the integration of life cycle assessment, especially a territorial life cycle assessment approach. As a final output, this research draw lines to integrated ecosystem services assessment guidelines, territorial life cycle assessment, and previous works on the intertwining of ES and LCA, highlighting the potential value of ecosystem accounts for standardisation of integrated ecosystem services assessments