1

The EEA “Water accounts” approachThe EEA “Water accounts” approach

Special regard to the use of nutrient balancesPhilippe Crouzet / BSS2

2

The DPSIR / PSR concept (nutrients The DPSIR / PSR concept (nutrients relationships)relationships)

DRIVING FORCESHouseholdsAgricultureIndustryTransport

PRESSURESUrban and IndustrialdischargesAgricultural EmissionsAtmospheric deposition

STATEWater compositionEcological statusChanges in soil structure

IMPACTSDeterioration of water qualityLess capacity to use waterIncreased cost for water usageLoss of amenityLoss of habitatsChange in ecological quality

RESPONSESImprove waste water treatmentBan on detergent PhosphateControl agricultural emissionsRestrict use of certain areasImprove informationPromote voluntary agreementsSearch alternative supplies

Source: Nutrients Monograph EEA

3

Targets of assessment and accountingTargets of assessment and accounting

• EEA mission is to provide... “relevant and reliable information”...:• Causal relationships must be established

accurately (‘relevant’),• The information must be unbiased and

comparable and comprehensive (‘reliable’).

• Tools are, among other:• Statistical assessments (D / P vs. I )• Accounting frameworks (R / D vs. S / I) • They operate on same data sets, at spatial

level, and are complementary approaches

4

Basic understanding of accountingBasic understanding of accounting

• Basic questions• Do gains compensate losses?• Is quality carried with change?• What are the processes?

• Practical questions• How to build accounts?

5

Water systems accountsWater systems accounts

Ecosystem accountsNatural capital

accounts

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Nutrient mass balance and accountsNutrient mass balance and accounts

• Nutrients mass balance assessment is:• Sectoral important information,• Direct input to “emissions accounts”,• “pressure” component in agricultural land• Source of information to estimate “drivers”• Possible use of mass balance models to

assess water / pesticide issues

• The required scale / resolution is not the same however:• Regional to catchment / NUTS5-4.

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Prerequisites to accountsPrerequisites to accounts

• Establish and demonstrate causal relationships,• Delineate the realm of accounts • Make comprehensive data supply:

• Analytical (e.g.: all sources of emissions)• Statistical survey (e.g.: water uses)• Mixed (e.g.: reconstructing by modelling, as for water

quality accounts or detailed mass balances)

• Accounting framework is a guideline to establishing multi-purpose interconnected data systems

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Establishing causal relationships: Establishing causal relationships: D/S analysisD/S analysis

• Application: stratified analysis of catchment / water composition relationships.

• Ingredients for stratified nutrients assessments:• CLC + population + catchments (e.g. CCM)

+ livestock (from mass balance model) • Water composition statistics at stations• Application model for defining strata• Statistical methods and targets

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Stratification: not straitghforward Stratification: not straitghforward

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Providing very demonstrative resultsProviding very demonstrative results

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Relation Driver / PressureRelation Driver / Pressure

• Agricultural pressures are analysed through a combination of presence of certain types of land, livestock and population: this is Driver assessment

• Mass balance (“surplus”) assessment gives comparable, despite locally different pattern, depending on the resolution of surplus modelling

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Surplus calculation at catchment Surplus calculation at catchment level -~6200 units). State 2000level -~6200 units). State 2000

Source: MEDD / Ifen 2004

Maize contribution

Pigs contribution

• Higher complexity• Crop and

livestock statistics

• Practices information

• Agronomical know-how

• Opens to detailed causal relationships

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Mass balances required ingredients Mass balances required ingredients

• Inputs:• Livestock effluents• Chemical fertilisers• Symbiotic fixation (N)• Atmospheric deposits

• Outputs• Export by vegetal crops• Export by pastures and

meadows• Volatilisation (chemical

fertilisers and livestock effluents)

N ex.N Stb.

N

Past..

Manure

Dung Speadeable area

Grazing area

• Mass balance is typically an accounting exercise, that can fit (with minor adjustments) into the input-output tables:

• Nutrient balance (key to ecosystem accounting)• Carbon (to be developped)• Water uses and Pesticides (already tested by Ifen with the

same model)

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Required agronomical data sources Required agronomical data sources resolutionresolution

Table Resolution SourceLivestock Catchment / NUTS4 Census + calc.

In Stable Nuts3 BN2002

Dung/Manure NUTS3 BN2002

Volatilisation NUTS1 BN2002

Agri-land area Catchment / NUTS4 Census + calc.

Yields NUTS2 (3 sometimes) SAA2001

Export tech. Coef. NUTS1 CORPEN

N mine / crop NUTS2 PC2001

Apportioning Fert. NUTS2 PC2001

Spreading NUTS2 PC2001

Source: MEDD / Ifen (Solagro)

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Next step: river assessmentNext step: river assessment

• River quality generalized index (RQGI) as part of the water quality accounting methodology is under implementation at the EEA. Can be a stand alone production.

• Breakdown of quality indexes by catchment to be related with catchment characteristics, as pressures and drivers (spatial location of pressures) to follow.

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Next step: adjusting mass balances Next step: adjusting mass balances to the needsto the needs

• Which mass balances to carry out in parallel with Estat / JRC, etc. to provide the ad hoc emission support? Which comparability / dissemination issues?

• Main issue is first collecting detailed census data (technical coefficients are more related to literature). Tries carried out by ERTC/TE 102005, outcomes not yet consolidated.