Twenty-ninth session
10-14 February 1997
Item 5 of the provisional agenda*
The Secretary-General has the honour to transmit to the Statistical Commission the report of the Task Force on Environment Statistics (Convener: Statistics Division of the United Nations Secretariat), which is contained in the annex; the members of the Task Force are listed in the appendix. The report is transmitted to the Commission in accordance with a request of the Statistical Commission at its twenty-eighth session, as well as a request of the Working Group on International Statistical Programmes and Coordination at its eighteenth session.
| INTRODUCTION ............................................... | 1 - 4 | 3 |
| I. FRAMEWORK FOR TASK FORCE ACTIVITIES .................. | 5 - 6 | 3 |
| II. ENVIRONMENTAL STATISTICS AND INDICATORS............. | 7 - 12 | 4 |
| A. Gaps and duplication of work ..................... | 8 - 10 | 4 |
| B. Goals, milestones and priorities ............... | 11 - 12 | 5 |
| III. ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING............................ | 13 - 17 | 5 |
| A. Gaps and duplication of work ..................... | 14 - 16 | 6 |
| B. Goals, milestones and priorities ................. | 17 | 6 |
| IV.POINTS FOR DISCUSSION ................................ | 18 | 6 |
| Table 1. Planned Activities.......................... | 8 |
| Table 2. Priorities..................................... | 20 |
| Appendix. List of members of the Task Force on Environment Statistics and invited non-governmental organizations .............. | 24 |
1. The Task Force on Environment Statistics was established by the Working Group on International Statistical Programmes and Coordination of the Statistical Commission at its fifteenth session. Its terms of reference, as proposed by the Working Group, were endorsed by the Statistical Commission at its twenty-seventh session. The list of members of the Task Force and invited non-governmental organizations is contained in the appendix.
2. At its twenty-eighth session, the Statistical Commission recommended that the Task Force undertake efforts to develop a framework for the various activities, indicating their relative priority and links to the policy agenda of national and international environmental agencies (see para. 5 below), and providing milestones against which progress could be measured (see paras. 11 and 17 below).a
3. At its eighteenth session, the Working Group stressed (see E/CN.3/1997/19, para. 19) that the report of the Task Force should present the work programmes of the different organizations, identify gaps and describe major strategic dimensions or goals of international work in the field of environment statistics (see sects. II and III below).
4. The United Nations Statistics Division, as the Convener of the Task Force, had proposed to hold the second meeting of the Task Force at the beginning of February 1996. Since the majority of the members of the Task Force indicated that they would be unable to attend, however, the meeting was cancelled. The Statistics Division has therefore prepared the present report in response to the request of the Statistical Commission, taking into consideration the comments of the Working Group on International Statistical Programmes and Coordination at its eighteenth session. The report includes information supplied by the members of the Task Force and invited non-governmental organizations in response to a Statistics Division questionnaire. The draft report was distributed to the members of the Task Force, and has since been revised and updated in response to their comments.
5. In response to the request of the Statistical Commission to develop a framework for Task Force activities, the present report summarizes the plans and priorities of the various organizations under a common format. Tables 1 and 2 reflect the framework of an integrated presentation of programmes established by the Task Force at its first meeting (New York, 12 September 1994). In table 1, three categories of activities are distinguished for each organization: (a) basic environment statistics, (b) environmental indicators and (c) environmental accounting. Environment statistics comprise statistical variables collected through monitoring and primary statistical surveys and records. Environmental indicators can be considered as a selection from or combination of primary statistics; they are typically targeted on key environmental concerns or policy objectives. Environmental accounting presents environmental data in a national accounting system that facilitates aggregation and cross-sectoral comparison. Within each area, activities are shown for: (a) data collection, (b) methodology and (c) technical cooperation. Information on priorities, as reported by the members of the Task Force, is presented in table 2.
6. The coverage of activities and priorities under this framework is limited to those members of the Task Force and invited non-governmental organizations that have supplied the requested information.b Despite the limited information available, an attempt has been made in the following sections to provide an analysis of the global situation in the fields of environment statistics, environmental indicators and environmental accounting. In response to the request of the Working Group on International Statistical Programmes and Coordination (see para. 3 above), major gaps, strategic dimensions or goals in those fields and milestones against which progress could be measured are described. In the case of duplication of work, suggestions for filling the gaps and improving coordination are also made. Due to a lack of information, links to national and international policy agendas could not be assessed.
7. As indicated in paragraph 5 above, tables 1 and 2 distinguish between environmental statistics and indicators based on the framework developed by the Task Force at its first meeting. However, environmental indicators are typically presented as a component of environment statistics. The following (and future) description of Task Force activities will therefore distinguish between environmental statistics and accounting only.
8. The availability of comparable environmental statistics and indicators is a major gap at the global level. To some extent, that gap will be closed by the compilation of environmental indicators by the Statistics Division, which will be fully coordinated with those compiled by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for its member States. There does not seem to be any duplication in data collection with the relevant specialized agencies and organizations (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat)) or regional bodies (regional commissions, Statistical Office of the European Communities (Eurostat) and Interstate Statistical Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States (STATCIS)) compiling data for their particular areas of responsibility. A certain risk of overlap in data collection is present, however, in indicator development and testing carried out by the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development of the United Nations Secretariat. The Statistics Division is working with the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development so that data collection from national statistical services may be coordinated and national reporting burdens minimized.
9. In the development of concepts and methods of environment statistics, the focus of international work seems to have shifted from basic statistical frameworks and variables to the development of environmental and sustainable development indicators. There is a proliferation of frameworks and indicator sets, as evidenced by a recent international workshop on indicators of sustainable developmentc and as can be seen from the methodological activities described in table 1. The Inter-governmental Working Group on the Advancement of Environment Statistics coordinates the development of environmental indicators. The development of indicators of sustainable development is coordinated by the Department on behalf of the Commission for Sustainable Development.
10. As shown in table 1, technical cooperation for capacity-building is carried out by several specialized organizations without risk of work duplication. At present, there seems to be a distinct lack of technical cooperation carried out by regional organizations even though most organizations envision such programmes in their work-plans. Training and capacity-building undertaken by the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development focuses on data use and is expected to complement national and regional activities of capacity-building in environmental statistics and indicators.
11. No clear distinction between goals and milestones can be drawn from the responses of Task Force members. The milestones reported were the following: (a) Economic Commission for Africa (ECA): the enhancement of the capability to generate reliable and timely environmental statistics and indicators; (b) Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC): the development and strengthening of the national capabilities of the statistical offices in the region so that the regular and systematic collection of a minimum set of environmental statistics and indicators for a selected group of countries in the region could be achieved; (c) FAO: the release of a guide on agri-environmental statistics and indicators for sustainable development by the end of 1996, and the publication, in 1997, of the State of the World's Forest; and (d) the Statistics Division: publication of a compendium of environmental statistics and indicators in 1998.
12. Table 2 shows that organizations give first priority to different areas of environmental statistics and indicators, including data collection, methodological development and capacity-building in their respective areas of responsibility.
13. Environmental accounting is still in a stage of methodological development. Except for data collection in selected areas of environmental accounting undertaken by Eurostat and STATCIS, no international compilation has therefore been conducted or is planned in this area.
14. Different frameworks and methodologies of environmental accounting have been advanced, notably the Dutch National Accounting Matrix including Environmental Accounts (NAMEA), natural resource accounts pioneered by Norway and France and further developed as material/energy balances by Germany, and a satellite account for environmental protection expenditure developed by Eurostat. The Statistics Division has attempted to reflect all these approaches in its Handbook of National Accounting: Integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting,d which it considered as work in progress. Other concepts and methods have been proposed for particular environmental concerns and different objectives of policy analysis. The proliferation of methodologies has led to some confusion and duplication of work in technical cooperation projects. The Statistics Division proposes, therefore, to create and maintain a bulletin board of technical cooperation projects in environmental statistics, indicators and accounting, providing information on country, project type and contact persons.
15. All these frameworks, concepts and methods are regularly explored by the London Group of environmental accounting experts.e The Statistics Division will present to the Group at its next meeting a proposal for revising the United Nations Handbook, building on the commonalities of the different approaches and experiences gained in country applications. It is proposed to establish a collaborative programme between the Statistics Division and the London Group to build consensus for the revision of the Handbook.
16. Task Force members involved in the development of integrated accounting are collaborating in the Nairobi Groupf which is preparing an operational manual on environmental accounting. The manual will provide a practical step-by-step description on how to implement the System of integrated Environmental and Economic Accounting (SEEA) at the national level. The manual will be applied in country projects envisaged by the Statistics Division and the World Bank, with the possible cooperation of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
17. ECA reported as milestones the application of environmental accounting in member States. The Statistics Division indicated two milestones: the operational manual on integrated environmental and economic accounting, and the revision of SEEA in the long term. First priority is given to methodological work by the Statistics Division, Eurostat and the World Wide Fund for Nature.
18. The Statistical Commission may wish to discuss:
(a) Priorities of work for the different members of the Task Force, notably with regard to filling gaps and avoiding duplication;
(b) The proposal by the United Nations Statistics Division to create a bulletin board for technical cooperation projects in the area of environmental statistics, indicators and accounting;
(c) Collaboration between the Statistics Division and the London Group on the revision of SEEA;
(d) Future work of the Task Force.
a Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 1995, Supplement No. 8 (E/1995/28), para. 77 (b).
b Of the 23 members of the Task Force, 13 provided information on plans and priorities for inclusion in the attached tables, of which 4 reported on goals and/or milestones and 2 on gaps.
c The Scientific Workshop on Indicators of Sustainable Development was held in Wuppertal, Germany from 15 to 17 November 1995; it was organized by the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment, Charles University Environmental Center in Prague, and the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy.
d United Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.XVII.12.
e The London Group was established in March 1994; it represents 14 mainly industrialized countries and 5 international organizations. Since then, it has held meetings at Washington in 1995 and at Stockholm in 1996.
f The Nairobi Group was established by the United Nations Environment Programme in November 1995 to advance work on environmental accounting. It includes experts from the World Bank, Habitat, Eurostat, Costa Rica, Egypt, India, Germany, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America.
| Organization/body | Environment statistics | Environmental indicators | Environmental accounting |
| United Nations Statistics Division | Methodology
Glossary of environment statistics (1996)
Technical cooperation
Technical support to national/regional efforts in the implementation of environment statistics programmes | Data collection
Compendium on environmental indicators (1998)
Methodology
Manual on environmental statistics and indicators (1997) | Methodology
Operational manual on integrated environmental and economic accounting for implementation of SEEA at the national level (1997)
Regional (subnational) environmental accounting
Revision of SEEA
Technical cooperation
Technical support to national efforts in the implementation of environmental accounting programmes (Philippines, Indonesia, Colombia, Republic of Korea, Costa Rica)
Test methodologies on regional (subnational) environmental accounting |
| Division for Sustainable Development of the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development of the United Nations Secretariat | Methodology
Coordination of the implementation of the work programme on indicators of the Commission on Sustainable Development, including:
Development of methodology sheets for indicators of sustainable development (1996)
Identification of inter-linkages among indicators (1996-1997)
Development of highly aggregated indicators (1996-1997)
Further development of frameworks (1996-1997)
Enhancement of information exchange (1996-1999) | ||
| Division for Sustainable Development of the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development of the United Nations Secretariat (continued) | Technical cooperation
Training and capacity-building at national and regional levels (1996-1999)
Indicators to be tested by Governments at the national level | ||
| Economic Commission for Africa | Data collection
African Compendium of Environment Statistics (1997)
Methodology
Compendium of Key Issues in Environmental Statistics for Africa (1996)
Guidelines on environmental statistics for Africa (1997)
Technical cooperation
Technical support to national/subregional efforts in the implementation of environmental statistics programmes | Data collection
Computer printouts of statistical environmental indicators (annual) | Methodology
Guidelines on environmental accounting for Africa (1998)
Technical cooperation
Technical support to national efforts in the implementation of environmental accounting programmes in the more advanced African countries |
| Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia | Data collection
Data collection of available data from ESCWA countries | Data collection
Collection of environment indicators at level of ESCWA region, based on a core set of indicators developed by the Statistics Division (1997) | |
| Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean | Data collection
Information exchange on environment data collection and reporting in various countries in the ECLAC region
Preparation of a directory of Latin American and Caribbean organizations involved in the production and compilation of environmental statistics and indicators, using information received from questionnaires
Methodology
Discussions with countries on international frameworks, classifications, concepts and methods of environment statistics and the possible adaptation of them to the needs and conditions in the ECLAC countries
Technical cooperation
It is planned to prepare and carry out a regional programme for the development of a system of environmental statistics in the ECLAC countries by holding meetings and workshops | Data collection
Development of a joint Instituto Nacional de Estatística, Geografía e Informática (INEGI) (Mexico)/ECLAC questionnaire to be used to undertake a survey of the present state of environment information in Latin America and the Caribbean
Based on information obtained from the survey, preparation of a diagnostic analysis of the availability, coverage and sources of environment information being produced in the ECLAC region | |
| Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations | Data collection
Continuation of the compilation of basic environment-related data on crop and livestock production, fishery and forestry production, and land and input use (fertilizers, pesticides and agricultural machinery) etc.; and dissemination via the Internet, FAO diskettes and publications
Methodology
Improvement of environment-related statistics in the field of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and collaboration with other United Nations bodies insofar as they relate to new data to be collected through agricultural censuses and surveys. Publication of The State of the World's Forests, which describes the state of forest resources, commodity production and trade, as well as policy relevant institutional issues
Technical cooperation
Promotion, in connection with agricultural censuses and surveys, of the collection of new data required | Data collection
In collaboration with other United Nations bodies, calculate and regularly update a set of environmental indicators for joint use. Expand the coverage of various time series data to enable the derivation of indicators for a larger number of countries
Methodology
Preparation of a guide for national statistical offices entitled "Agri-environmental statistics and indicators of sustainable development"
Collaborate with national and regional bodies in the development of appropriate indicators
Development of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management
Technical cooperation
Actively involved in a number of international initiatives to develop criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management, such as the Helsinki process, the Montreal process, the Tarapoto proposals and the dry-zone-Africa initiative. Also organizing expert meetings in the Near East and Central America for review of issues relating to dry zones | Methodology
Preliminary work on drafting guidelines for adopting a sectoral approach for compiling environmental accounts
Establishment of links between the overall system and the system for agriculture
Test of the feasibility of the methodology developed in some developing countries
Development of concepts and methods of estimation for components of environmental accounts, such as fish stock, stock of standing timber and economic value of non-wood forest products |
| World Health Organization | Data collection
File of external investments in health and environment
Country data collection, analysis and dissemination on water supply and sanitation, water and air quality and environmental health in the occupied Palestinian territories | ||
| World Health Organization (continued) | Data collection (continued)
Information exchange on environmental data collection and reporting
Continuation and improvement (data quality, expansion of scope and coverage) of ongoing data collection and dissemination
Field testing of methodologies developed
Preparation of a world health and environment report for 1997, with data on environmental health hazards and their public health impact
Decade monitoring system of water supply and sanitation. This system is being continuously updated based on data from the WHO/UNICEF Joint Water Supply and Sanitation Monitoring Programme, and from information collected through WHO regional and country offices
Methodology
Joint Water Supply and Sanitation Monitoring Programme and the Water Supply and Sanitation Monitoring System. Data on coverage and type of water supply and sanitation systems
An environmental health monitoring system (information on environmental conditions in the occupied Palestinian territories)
Small Community Environmental Monitoring. Information on compliance on environmental legislation
Global Air Quality Monitoring Programme, jointly with UNEP
Preparation of guidance on monitoring and data analysis methodologies | ||
| World Health Organization (continued) | Methodology (continued)
Global Freshwater Quality Monitoring Programme (WHO/UNEP/UNESCO/WHO)
Health and Environment Analysis for Decision-making (HEAD-LAMP) project
Establishment of emissions inventory systems for environmental data
Guidelines for decision-making and management in water pollution control and environmental health
Develop guidelines and promotional materials for Information for Decision-making in Environment and Health (IDEAH), an umbrella activity incorporating all WHO activities in this area
Publication of a document on methods and applications of environmental health indicators
Technical cooperation
Support of national efforts to improve planning and management through the strengthening of monitoring capacity
Training at selected locations on key topics related to the monitoring and analysis of air quality data
Expansion of technical cooperation through training and seminars on monitoring and rapid assessment in developing countries and countries in economic transition
Support of technology transfer in the field of air pollution monitoring and in the use of rapid assessment methods
Organize training workshops on HEAD-LAMP and IDEAH methodologies in developing countries | ||
| United Nations Centre for
Human Settlements/ Habitat | Data collection
Compendium of Human Settlements Statistics (1995), joint United Nations Statistics Division/United Nations Centre for Human Settlements publication
City Data Programme for particular sections of infrastructure and environment. Data collection is carried out in the context of the joint Large Cities Statistics Project | Data collection
Waste management indicators, developed by the settlements infrastructure environment programme
Environmental management indicators, developed by the indicators programme
Infrastructure and environment indicators contained in the Large Cities Statistics Questionnaire
| |
| United Nations Conference on Trade and Development | Data collection
Database on international trade in waste and recoverable materials
Technical cooperation
Support to the Technical Working Group of the Basel Convention in identifying waste streams important to trade
Support to the secretariat of the Basel Convention in establishing an information management system on wastes | Data collection
Based on UNCTAD database on minerals and metals and FAO data on agricultural production, consumption and trade, calculation of long-term trends in intensity of use of the most important industrial input materials (i.e., physical consumption per unit of GDP at constant prices). This indicator is part of the working list of indicators of the Commission on Sustainable Development for chapter 4 (Changing consumption patterns) of Agenda 21 | |
| United Nations Environment Programme |
| Data collection
Coordinating, with the United Nations Statistics Division of information-sharing between organizations on data collection
Encouraging greater user involvement
Promoting the use of indicators and the presentation of environmental data and information collection
Methodology
Review of international work, such as the recently produced state-of-the-art report on indicators, produced in conjunction with the National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection of the Netherlands
Harmonization of approaches. Following a World Bank workshop in September 1994 to promote international agreement and cooperation in the development of a core set of sustainable development indicators, proposals for approaches to indicator development are being prepared
Support of the development of descriptive indicators in a selected number of areas corresponding to major UNEP programmes
Assistance to the Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development in the development and building of international agreement on the basic set of indicators | Methodology
UNEP will focus its work in 1996/1997 on the preparation, in collaboration with the United Nations Statistics Division, of a user-friendly manual on integrated environmental and economic accounting |
World Bank |
Data collection
Although the Bank may collect certain environmental data in the context of specific operational work, it does not compile such data on a regular basis | Coordinate with the United Nations Statistics
Division through the consultative expert group for
informal collaboration in the field of indicators
Development of selected number of aggregate indicators, consistent with Agenda 21, to support specified international policies, identification of priorities and allocation of resources
Support and guidance to the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment/ UNEP indicator project
Data collection
No large-scale direct data collection is planned. However, the Bank collects environmental indicators from a variety of sources both for internal and external dissemination. Indicators on commercial energy use, land use and urbanization, and forest and water resources will be included in the forthcoming publication World Development Indicators
Methodology
The Bank is actively cooperating with the Commission on Sustainable Development in developing a set of agreed-upon indicators and the methodology to arrive at such indicators. To that end, the Environment Department, which represents the Bank at sessions of the Commission has hosted several workshops on the subject, and has produced reports and documents, including "Environmental performance indicators: a first edition note" |
Methodology
Cooperate with and support the United Nations Statistics Division and UNEP in the preparation of a user-friendly operational manual of integrated environmental and economic accounting. Also, based on lessons learned from case studies planned for 1996 and 1997, replicable methodologies will be arrived at for the development of guidelines in 1997
Technical cooperation
Technical and methodological support to three countries (South Africa, Indonesia and Costa Rica) in the implementation of important aspects of environmental accounting. Related workshop and training exercises are also envisaged for 1997 |
| Statistical Office of the European Communities | Data collection
Harmonize and improve quality of data collected in the joint OECD/Eurostat questionnaire. Special attention to water statistics
General expenditure data collection using SERIEE methodology
Create formalized legal basis for collecting waste statistics
General data collection on water resources and use
Add additional environmentally relevant data to sectoral statistics
Methodology
Start work on environmental taxes and subsidies
Start work on material flows
Nomenclature of sources of emissions
Operational nomenclatures for waste statistics
Material flows manual
Sectoral (e.g., nutrient) balances
Technical cooperation
Include Central and Eastern European countries in development of concepts and methods
Offer (small amounts of) in-house training
Start cooperation with countries on southern and eastern coast of the Mediterranean | Data collection
Mainly reuse of other data
Regional (subnational) environmental indicators
Methodology
Development of an emission structure information system for the regular production of environmental pressure indicators
Development of indicators and indexes of pressures (choice and weights) using expert opinions
Sustainability indicators
Development of land-use indicators
Technical cooperation
Include transition economies in the methodological development of indicators | Data collection
See environment statistics
Data for physical accounts
Methodology
Participation in the work of the London Group
Development of pilot natural resource accounts
Development of environmental accounts linked to national accounting matrices
Land-use accounting
Technical cooperation
Inclusion of transition countries in methodological work |
| Inter-state Statistical Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States | Data collection
Collection processing and compiling of data from national statistical services of CIS; further development and improvement of that work in 1996 and later
Collection and analysis of information on ecology in CIS and other countries and international organizations
Methodology
Development of recommendations on calculation of pollutants from road transport
Technical cooperation
Advise national services in the field of data collection | Data collection
Environmental Protection in CIS Countries (1996)
Publication of statistical and analytical papers
Calculation of indicators for inclusion in the CIS statistical yearbook
Methodology
Preparation of proposals concerning methodological standards for environmental indicators | Data collection
Collection of data on expenditures for environment protection
Methodology
Improvement of data collection on expenditure for environmental protection and other cost indicators
Case studies on environmental accounting |
| International Statistical Institute | International Environmental Statistics
Newsletter, an international exchange of
information on environmental statistics
ISI Environment Committee, a forum for the discussion of issues related to statistical education (the Committee is responsible for the above-mentioned Newsletter)
| ||
| World Wide Fund for Nature | Data collection
Second annual report of Green Gauge, a publicity-oriented report on trends in the United Kingdom environment, with non-governmental organizations
In 1995, publications included indicators for use in the European Community Structural Funds process, indicators for actions for the third session of the Commission on Sustainable Development, in 1995, environmental indicators for the United Kingdom, a southern perspective on indicators, a European forest "scorecard", and a methodology for measuring forest quality
Methodology
Preparation of a users' guide for the development of indicators of sustainable development at the community level, with the New Economics Foundation
Preparation of learning materials on indicators of process and impact for integrated conservation and development projects
Development of an international index of the state of the environment, with the World Resources Institute and World Conservation Monitoring Centre
| Methodology
Follow-up work to the May 1995 conference on SNA reform, organized by WWF, the European Community and the Club of Rome
Follow-up work on the October 1995 conference on SNA reform, organized by UNEP and the World Bank
Application of SEEA to the conditions and concerns of the United Kingdom |
| United Nations Statistics Division | Compilation of environmental indicators
Operational manual on integrated environmental and economic accounting | Manual on environmental statistics and indicators
Technical cooperation |
| Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development | Development of methodology sheets for indicators of sustainable
development
Training and capacity-building for indicator development and use at the national and regional levels
Indicators to be tested by Governments at the national level
Identification of inter-linkages among indicators | Enhancement of information exchange
Development of highly aggregated indicators
Development of frameworks |
| Economic Commission for Africa | Development and strengthening of environment statistics in Africa | Development of indicators on major environmental concerns of
Africa
Environmental accounting for Africa |
| Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean | To ascertain, through the use of questionnaire responses and the national diagnostic analyses prepared by countries, the degree of availability, scope and coverage of environmental statistics and indicators being produced in the Latin American and Caribbean countries | Technical support to national/regional efforts developing and strengthening capabilities in the field of environment statistics and indicators |
| Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia | To establish a database on environment statistics for the ESCWA region. Resources were not approved in the 1996-1997 biennium. This activity will be rescheduled in 1998-1999 | Collection of available environment statistics and indicators for ESCWA countries. Such data will be published in a separate chapter of the ESCWA Statistical Abstract or the Compendium of Social Statistics |
| Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations | Continuation of the compilation of basic environment-related data
Calculate, update and expand the coverage of a set of environmental indicators
Preparation of a guide entitled "Agri-environmental statistics and indicators of sustainable development" | Methodological work to:
(a) Establish links between the global system and the system of agriculture
(b) Test the feasibility of the methodology developed in some of the developing countries |
| World Health Organization | Develop approaches for environmental health indicators that help
countries to avoid duplication, reduce unnecessary monitoring and
improve the use of meaningful data in decision-making
Strengthen country capacity to collect and interpret key information in accordance with recommendations for "Health for all" monitoring
| Achieve intersectoral communication and collaboration (both at country and international levels) in order that data and statistics collected by each sector become useful for the other sectors' sustainable development programmes, with a focus on strengthening the health sector role in this work |
| Statistical Office of the European Communities | Harmonize and improve quality of data collected in the joint
OECD/Eurostat questionnaire, paying special attention to water
statistics
Generalize expenditure data collection using the SERIEE methodology
Create a formalized legal basis for collecting waste statistics
General data collection on water resources and use
Add additional environmentally relevant data to sectoral statistics
Nomenclature of sources of emissions
Operational nomenclatures for waste statistics
Regional (subnational) environmental indicators
Development of an emission structure information system for the regular production of environmental pressure indicators
Development of indicators and indexes of pressure (choice and weights) using expert opinions
Continue activity in London Group
Develop environmental accounts linked to national accounting matrices
| Start on environmental taxes and subsidies
Start on material flows
Material flows manual
Sectoral (e.g., nutrient balance)
Include Central and Eastern European countries in development of concepts and methods
Offer (small amounts of) in-house training
Start cooperation with countries on Southern and Eastern coast of the Mediterranean
Mainly reuse of other data
Sustainability indicators
Develop land-use indicators
See environment statistics
Data for physical accounts
Land-use accounting
Include transition countries in methodological reflection |
| Interstate Statistical Committee of the
Commonwealth of the Independent States
| Collection and dissemination of data
Publication of environmental protection in CIS countries
Development of recommendations on calculation of pollutants from road transport
Technical advisory services to national agencies | Improvement of data collection on expenditure for environmental
protection
Case studies on environmental accounting
|
| World Wide Fund for Nature | Applied SEEA studies for a range of developing and OECD countries
Powerful and concise indicators related to Agenda 21 clusters, to guide the 1997 five-year review of Agenda 21
Building capacity in developing countries for the collection, analysis, dissemination and use of accurate and timely environmental statistics |
Members
Statistics Division of the United Nations Secretariat
Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development of the United Nations Secretariat
Economic Commission for Africa
Economic Commission for Europe
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
International Atomic Energy Agency
International Monetary Fund
International Statistical Institute
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development
Inter-State Statistical Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States
Statistical Office of the European Community
United Nations Centre for Human Settlements
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
United Nations Development Programme
United Nations Environment Programme
United Nations Research Institute for Social Development
World Bank
World Health Organization
World Meteorological Organization
World Tourism Organization
Invited non-governmental organizations
World Resources Institute
World Wide Fund for Nature