The motivation for ecosystem accounts comes from a wide range of emerging demands for integrating information on environmental sustainability and human well-being. This implies a need for a better understanding of what ecosystems provide in terms of both market and non-market goods and services and what attributes of ecosystems are crucial for maintaining these flows of value to society.

Part II of the revised SEEA will contain a framework for experimental ecosystem accounts, which will provide a description of the structure and scope of ecosystem accounts. The development of the conceptual framework for SEEA ecosystem accounts is coordinated by the United Nations Statistics Division, the European Environment Agency and the World Bank WAVES global partnership.