GLOSSARY


Abiotic services

Abiotic services refer to flows from the environment to economic and other human activity that do not arise as a result of bio-physical processes and other interactions within and between ecosystems. The main examples are flows of mineral and energy resources from underground deposits, energy from the sun for the growing of crops and as a renewable source of energy, the movement of wind and tides which can be captured to provide sources of energy, and the provision of space in areas of land and water to undertake economic and other human activity (SEEA, 2012, paras. 3.19-3.21). See also Ecosystem services.

Anthropogenic

Anthropogenic refers to phenomena created by people or caused by human activity; for example, anthropogenic pollution.

Basic price

The basic price is the amount receivable by the producer from the purchaser for a unit of a good or service produced as output, minus any tax payable plus any subsidy receivable, on that unit as a consequence of its production or sale. It excludes any transport charges invoiced separately by the producer.

Basic spatial units

A basic spatial unit (BSU) is a small area. Basic spatial units (BSUs) are formed by delineating tessellations (small areas e.g., 1 km²), typically by overlaying a grid on a map of the relevant territory. They may also be land parcels delineated by a cadastre or using remote sensing pixels (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.52). Basic spatial units are the smallest units in the model used to define areas for the purposes of ecosystem accounting. They can be aggregated to form Land cover / Ecosystem functional units (LCEU) and Ecosystem accounting units (EAU). See also Ecosystem accounting units, Land cover/Ecosystem functional units.

Beneficiaries

Beneficiaries are individuals and economic units (enterprises, households, governments and those units in the rest of the world) which receive the benefits to which ecosystem services contribute (SEEA, 2012, paras. 2.76; 2.98; 3.8; and 3.32). See also Benefits, Ecosystem services, Economic units.

Benefits

Benefits reflect the goods and services that are ultimately used and enjoyed by people and which contribute to individual and societal well-being (SEEA, 2012, paras. 2.19-2.21). In SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting, benefits are distinguished from ecosystem services (which contribute to the generation of benefits) and from well-being (to which benefits contribute). In many studies, benefits and ecosystem services are defined synonymously but this is not the approach taken in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. In some studies, the word 'goods' is used to refer to the concept of benefits as defined here. The term 'goods' is not used here to avoid confusion with the use of the same term in economic statistics where it relates to the production, consumption and accumulation of tangible items (e.g. as used in the phrase 'the production of goods and services'). Two broad types of benefits are described in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. SNA benefits comprise the products (goods and services) produced by economic units (e.g. food, clothing, shelter, entertainment, etc.) within the production boundary defined by the SNA. SNA benefits include goods produced by households for their own consumption. Non-SNA benefits are not generated as a result of economic production processes defined by the SNA. Rather they comprise ecosystem services that do not contribute to the production of SNA goods and services. See also Ecosystem services.

Biocarbon

Biocarbon refers to carbon stored in the biosphere, in living and dead biomass and soils (SEEA, 2012, para. 4.97).

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part, this includes diversity within species, between species and ecosystems (Convention on Biological Diversity, 2003, Article 2, Use of Terms). In SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting, the measurement of biodiversity is focused on the assessment of diversity of species although changes in the diversity of ecosystems is also an important output from the measurement of changes in ecosystem extent and condition. See also Ecosystem characteristics.

Compensation of employees (COE)

The compensation of employees (COE) is the total remuneration, in cash or in kind, payable by an enterprise to an employee in return for work done by the employee during the accounting period. It is further classified into two sub-components: wages and salaries; and employers' social contributions. Compensation of employees is not payable in respect of unpaid work undertaken voluntarily, including the work done by members of a household within an unincorporated enterprise owned by the same household. Compensation of employees excludes any taxes payable by the employer on the wage and salary bill (e.g. payroll tax). See also Employers' social contributions and Wages and salaries.

Consumer surplus

Consumer surplus is the gain obtained by consumers because they are able to purchase a product at a market price that is less than the highest price they would be willing to pay (SEEA, 2012, para. 5.19). See also Exchange value, Producer surplus, and Welfare economic value.

Consumption of fixed capital

The consumption of fixed capital is the value of the reproducible fixed assets used up during a period of account as a result of normal wear and tear, foreseen obsolescence and the normal rate of accidental damage. Unforeseen obsolescence, major catastrophes and the depletion of natural resources are not taken into account.

Cultivated biological resources

Cultivated biological resources cover animal resources yielding repeat products and tree, crop and plant resources yielding repeat products whose natural growth and regeneration are under the direct control, responsibility and management of institutional units (see Chapter 10 of 2008 SNA for more details). They include livestock raised for breeding, dairy, wool, etc., and vineyards, orchards and other plantations of trees.

Cultural services

Cultural services relate to the intellectual and symbolic benefits that people obtain from ecosystems through recreation, knowledge development, relaxation, and spiritual reflection (SEEA, 2012, para. 3.4(iii)). See also Ecosystem services, Provisioning services, Regulating services.

Current prices

Estimates at current prices are valued at the prices of the period to which the observation relates. For example, estimates for this financial year are valued using this financial year's prices. This contrasts to chain volume measures where the prices used in valuation refer to the prices of the previous year. Current prices are also known as purchasers' prices and market prices.

Degradation

See Ecosystem degradation.

Depletion

Depletion, in physical terms, is the decrease in the quantity of the stock of a natural resource over an accounting period that is due to the extraction of the natural resource by economic units occurring at a level greater than that of regeneration (SEEA Central Framework, para. 5.76). Depletion is defined distinctly from ecosystem degradation in that it refers to the decrease in a specific individual environmental asset rather than the decline in the functioning of an ecosystem asset as a whole. Nonetheless there are likely to be close connections between depletion and ecosystem degradation in specific spatial areas. Note that depletion only relates to decreases in natural resources (i.e. it does not cover cultivated biological resources), and does not apply to land (noting that there may be depletion of soil resources, for example through erosion). Depletion may be estimated in monetary terms. See also Ecosystem degradation, Environmental assets, Natural resources, and SEEA Central Framework Section 5.4.2 and Annex A5.1.

Direct tourism gross domestic product

Direct tourism gross domestic product (GDP) is Direct tourism gross value added plus net taxes on products that are attributable to the tourism industry (tourism net taxes on products). Direct tourism GDP will generally have a higher value than direct tourism value added.

Direct tourism gross value added

Direct tourism gross value added is the value of direct tourism output at basic prices less the value of inputs used in producing these tourism products. This measure is directly comparable with the value added of 'conventional' industries such as mining and manufacturing and should also be used for comparisons across countries.

Direct tourism output

Direct tourism output is the value of goods and services at basic prices which are consumed by visitors and produced in Australia by industries in a direct relationship with visitors.

Domestic tourism consumption

Domestic tourism consumption consists of the tourism consumption by resident visitors on tourism related products within Australia. It is the sum of household tourism consumption and business and government tourism consumption.

Economic unit

An economic unit – referred to as an institutional unit in national accounting – is an economic entity that is capable, in its own right, of owning assets, incurring liabilities, and engaging in economic activities and in transactions with other entities (SNA, 2008, para. 4.2). Institutional units may be either households, or legal or social entities that are recognised independently of the people that own or control them. Groupings of institutional units that are similar in their purposes, objectives and behaviours are defined as institutional sectors. Following SNA, five types of institutional sector are recognised:

1. households
2. non-financial corporations
3. financial corporations
4. general government
5. non-profit institutions serving households.

In the SEEA, financial and non-financial corporations are usually combined, and presented as one sector. An enterprise is the view of an institutional unit as a producer of goods and services. An establishment is an enterprise, or part of an enterprise, that is situated in a single location, and in which only a single productive activity is carried out or in which the principal productive activity accounts for most of the value added. An industry consists of a group of establishments engaged in the same, or similar, kinds of activity. Examples include agriculture, manufacturing, education, finance and retail activity. For more details, see SNA 2008 Chapter 4 and SEEA Central Framework Chapter 2.

Economically significant price

An economically significant price is a price which has a significant influence on both the amount producers are willing to supply and the amount purchasers wish to buy.

Ecosystem accounting units

Ecosystem accounting units (EAU) are large, mutually exclusive, spatial areas delineated on the basis of the purpose of accounting. Generally, they will reflect a landscape perspective. Factors considered in their delineation include administrative boundaries, environmental management areas, socio-ecological systems and large scale natural features (e.g. river basins) (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.64). A hierarchy of EAUs may be established building from a landscape scale to larger sub-national and national boundaries. At the landscape level, an EAU may be considered to reflect ecosystem assets. It is the highest level of the spatial model used to define areas for the purposes of ecosystem accounting. See also Basic spatial units, Land cover/Ecosystem functional units, and Ecosystem assets.

Ecosystem assets

Ecosystem assets are spatial areas containing a combination of biotic and abiotic components and other characteristics that function together (SEEA, 2012, paras. 2.31 & 4.1). An ecosystem asset is defined according to the analysis being conducted. It may be defined as containing a specific combination of ecosystem characteristics (e.g. a tropical rain forest represented by an LCEU), or a variety of combinations (e.g. a river basin containing wetlands, agriculture and settlements represented by an EAU). Ecosystem assets should be distinguished (a) from the various individual components (e.g. plants, animals, soil, water bodies) that are contained within a spatial area; and (b) from other ecosystem characteristics (e.g. biodiversity, resilience). Each of these components and other characteristics may be considered assets in their own right in different contexts and discussions. In the SEEA Central Framework, for example, many individual components are considered individual environmental assets. For ecosystem accounting purposes, the focus is on the functioning system as the asset. The term 'ecosystem assets' has been adopted rather than 'ecosystem capital' because the word 'assets' is more aligned with the terminology employed by the SNA and also conveys better the intention for ecosystem accounting to encompass measurement in both monetary and physical terms. In general, the terms 'ecosystem assets' and 'ecosystem capital' may be considered synonymous. See also Ecosystems, Ecosystem accounting units, Land cover/Ecosystem functional unit, Ecosystem capital, Environmental assets, Natural capital, Natural resources.

Ecosystem capacity

The concept of ecosystem capacity is not defined from a measurement perspective in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. It is linked to the general model of ecosystem assets and ecosystem services that is described. In general terms, the concept of ecosystem capacity refers to the ability of a given ecosystem asset to generate a set of ecosystem services in a sustainable way into the future. While this general concept is very relevant to ecosystem assessment, definitive measurement of ecosystem capacity requires the selection of a particular basket of ecosystem services and in this regard measures of ecosystem capacity are more likely to relate to consideration of a range of alternative ecosystem use scenarios than to a single basket of ecosystem services. See also Ecosystem assets, Ecosystem services, Ecosystem condition.

Ecosystem characteristics

Ecosystem characteristics relate to the ongoing operation of the ecosystem and its location. Key characteristics of the operation of an ecosystem are its structure, composition, processes and functions. Key characteristics of the location of an ecosystem are its extent, configuration, landscape forms, and climate and associated seasonal patterns. Ecosystem characteristics also relate strongly to biodiversity at a number of levels (see Section 2.1 SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting 2012 for more details). There is no classification of ecosystem characteristics since, while each characteristic may be distinct, they are commonly overlapping. In some situations the use of the generic term, 'characteristics' may seem to be more usefully replaced with terms such as 'components' or 'aspects'. In describing the broader concept of an ecosystem, the use of the term 'characteristics' is intended to encompass all of the various perspectives of an ecosystem. See also Ecosystems, Ecosystem assets, Ecosystem condition.

Ecosystem condition

Ecosystem condition reflects the overall quality of an ecosystem asset, in terms of its characteristics (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.34). Measures of ecosystem condition are generally combined with measures of ecosystem extent to provide an overall measure of the state of an ecosystem asset. Ecosystem condition also underpins the capacity of an ecosystem asset to generate ecosystem services and hence changes in ecosystem condition will impact on expected ecosystem service flows. See also Ecosystem assets, Ecosystem characteristics, Ecosystem extent, Expected ecosystem service flows.

Ecosystem conversion

Ecosystem conversions reflect changes in the extent or composition of an ecosystem asset from one ecosystem type to another that are considered significant or irreversible (e.g. due to deforestation to create agricultural land) (SEEA, 2012, para. 4.32).

Ecosystem degradation

Ecosystem degradation is the decline in an ecosystem asset over an accounting period due to economic and other human activity. It is generally reflected in declines in ecosystem condition and/or declines in expected ecosystem service flows. Measures of ecosystem degradation will be influenced by the scale of analysis, the characteristics of the ecosystem asset, and the expectations regarding the use of the ecosystem asset in the future. Ecosystem degradation may be measured in physical and monetary terms (SEEA, 2012, paras. 4.27-4.32).

Ecosystem enhancement

Ecosystem enhancement is the increase and/or improvement in an ecosystem asset that is due to economic and other human activity (SEEA, 2012, para. 4.38).

Ecosystem extent

Ecosystem extent refers to the size of an ecosystem asset, commonly in terms of spatial area (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.37). Where an ecosystem asset comprises a number of areas with different combinations of ecosystem characteristics (i.e. the ecosystem asset is a type of ecosystem accounting unit), then ecosystem extent may be measured in terms of the proportion of an area of a specific combination of characteristics to the total area of the ecosystem asset. For example, the extent of wetlands may be 30 per cent of the area of a river basin. See also Ecosystem asset, Ecosystem condition, Ecosystem services.

Ecosystem or Ecological capital

Ecosystem or ecological capital is not explicitly defined in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. The term 'ecosystem assets' is used instead to refer to the individual spatial areas that are the focus of measurement. In many discussions, the term 'ecosystem capital' relates to a broader concept of the stock providing a foundation for future well-being, together with human, social and produced capital. These various types of capital are regularly brought together in models of sustainable development and wealth accounting. There is no difference between the application of the terms 'capital' and 'assets' in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting, and their use in other contexts (e.g. wealth accounting). Some care is needed to understand the potentially different measurement scopes of these types of capital and assets. Specific considerations concern the treatment of mineral and energy resources, and the distinction between natural and cultivated biological resources. See also Ecosystem assets, Environmental assets, Natural capital, Natural resources.

Ecosystem services

Ecosystem services are the contributions of ecosystems to benefits used in economic and other human activity (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.23). The definition of ecosystem services in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting involves distinctions between (i) the ecosystem services; (ii) the benefits to which they contribute; and (iii) the well-being which is ultimately affected. Ecosystem services should also be distinguished from the ecosystem characteristics, functions and processes of ecosystem assets. Ecosystem services are defined only when a contribution to a benefit is established. Consequently, the definition of ecosystem services excludes the set of flows commonly referred to as supporting or intermediate services. These flows include intra- and inter-ecosystem flows and the role of ecosystem characteristics that are together reflected in ecosystem processes. A range of terms is used to refer to the concept of ecosystem services defined here. Most common are the terms 'ecosystem goods and services' and 'final ecosystem services'. These two terms highlight particular aspects of the definition above. The first recognises that ecosystem services includes flows of tangible items (e.g. timber, fish, etc.) in addition to intangible services. The second recognises that only those ecosystem services that contribute to a benefit; that is, they are final outputs of the ecosystem – are within scope. Ecosystem services as defined in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting exclude abiotic services and hence do not encompass the complete set of flows from the environment. A complete set of flows from the environment may be reflected in the term 'environmental goods and services'. Three main types of ecosystem services are described: provisioning services, regulating services and cultural services. The Common International Classification for Ecosystem Services (CICES) is an interim classification for ecosystem services. See also Abiotic services, Provisioning services, Regulating services, Cultural services, Intra- and inter-ecosystem flows.

Ecosystems

Ecosystems are defined as 'a dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-organism communities and their non-living environment interacting as a functional unit' (Convention on Biological Diversity, 2003, Article 2, Use of Terms). They may be identified at different spatial scales, and are commonly nested and overlapping. For accounting purposes, ecosystem assets are defined through the delineation of specific and mutually exclusive spatial areas. See also Ecosystem assets, Ecosystem accounting units, and Land cover/Ecosystem functional units.

Environmental assets

Environmental assets are the naturally occurring living and non-living components of the Earth. Together they constitute the bio-physical environment, which may provide benefits to humanity (SEEA Central Framework, para. 2.17). This definition of environmental assets is intended to be broad and encompassing. As explained in the SEEA Central Framework, the measurement of environmental assets can be considered from two perspectives. The first perspective relates to individual components (i.e. individual environmental assets providing materials and space to all economic activities). Examples include land, soil, water, timber, aquatic, and mineral and energy resources. The second perspective relates to environmental assets from the perspective of ecosystems. The scope of environmental assets includes mineral and energy resources, which are excluded from the scope of ecosystem assets. For this reason, environmental assets are not the same as ecosystem assets. Also, the scope of environmental assets is broader than natural resources as it includes produced assets such as cultivated crops and plants (including timber and orchards), livestock, and fish in aquaculture facilities. In the SEEA Central Framework, the measurement scope of environmental assets is broader in physical terms than in monetary terms, because the boundary in monetary terms is limited to those assets that have an economic value in monetary terms following the market valuation principles of the SNA. See also Ecosystem assets, Natural resources, and SEEA Central Framework Chapter 5.

Eutrophication

Eutrophication is the enrichment of an ecosystem with chemical nutrients, typically compounds containing nitrogen, phosphorus, or both. Eutrophication can be a natural process in lakes, occurring as they age through geological time. It is also known as hypertrophication, which is the ecosystem response to the addition of artificial or natural substances, mainly phosphates, through detergents, fertilisers, or sewage, to an aquatic system. One example is the 'bloom' or great increase of phytoplankton in a water body as a response to increased levels of nutrients. Negative environmental effects include hypoxia, the depletion of oxygen in the water, which may cause death to aquatic animals.

Exchange value

Exchange value reflects the actual outlays/revenue for all quantities of a product that are transacted. It is equal to the market price multiplied by the quantity transacted. It assumes that all purchasers pay (and producers receive) the same price on average, and hence excludes consumer surplus. Exchange values are those that underpin national and business accounting frameworks as they can be estimated based on observed transactions (SEEA, 2012, para. 5.21). See also Market price, Consumer surplus.

Expected ecosystem service flow

Expected ecosystem service flow is an aggregate measure of future ecosystem service flows from an ecosystem asset for a given basket of ecosystem services (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.39). In general terms, the measure of expected ecosystem service flows is an assessment of the capacity of an ecosystem asset to generate ecosystem services in the future. However, the focus is on the generation of a specific, expected combination of ecosystem services (the given basket) which may or may not be able to be produced on a sustainable basis. Thus the measure is not necessarily reflective of sustainable or optimal scenarios of future ecosystem asset use. At the same time the expectations of future ecosystem service flows must be informed by likely changes in ecosystem condition, noting that the relationship between condition and ecosystem service flow is likely to be complex and non-linear. See also Ecosystem services, Ecosystem asset, Ecosystem condition.

Final Ecosystem Services

See Ecosystem services.

Finfish

Finfish are fish that harvested in fishery. The term is used to differentiate true fish from shellfish.

Geocarbon

Geocarbon is carbon stored in the geosphere and can be disaggregated into: oil, gas, coal resources, rocks (primarily limestone) and minerals (e.g. carbonate rocks used in cement production, methane clathrates and marine sediments) (SEEA, 2012, para. 4.97).

Gross domestic product (GDP)

Gross domestic product (GDP) is the total market value of goods and services produced in Australia within a given period after deducting the cost of goods and services used up in the process of production but before deducting allowances for the consumption of fixed capital. GDP is measured at current or 'market' prices. It is equivalent to gross national expenditure plus exports of goods and services less imports of goods and services.

Gross mixed income (GMI)

Gross mixed income (GMI) is the surplus or deficit accruing from production by unincorporated enterprises. GMI includes elements of both compensation of employees (returns on labour inputs) and operating surplus (returns on capital inputs).

Gross operating surplus (GOS)

Gross operating surplus is the operating surplus accruing to all enterprises, except unincorporated enterprises, from their operations in Australia. It is the excess of gross output over the sum of intermediate consumption, compensation of employees, and taxes less subsidies on production and imports. It is calculated before deduction of consumption of fixed capital, dividends, interest, royalties and land rent, and direct taxes payable, but after deducting the inventory valuation adjustment. Gross operating surplus is also calculated for general government, and equals consumption of fixed capital for that sector.

Gross primary productivity (GPP)

Gross primary productivity (GPP) is the rate of gain of carbon in leaves, stems, and roots by photosynthesis.

Gross state product (GSP)

Gross state product is defined equivalently to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) but refers to production within a state or territory rather than to the nation as a whole. See Gross domestic product.

Gross value added (GVA)

Gross value added is the value of output at basic prices minus the value of intermediate consumption at purchasers' prices. The term is used to describe gross product by industry and by sector. Basic prices valuation of output removes the distortion caused by variations in the incidence of commodity taxes and subsidies across the output of individual industries.

Hours worked

The hours worked by all labour engaged in the production of goods and services, including hours worked by civilian wage and salary earners, employers, self-employed persons, persons working one hour or more without pay in a family business or on a farm, and members of the Australian defence forces.

Hypertrophication

See Eutrophication.

Indigenous cultural services

Indigenous cultural services are the intellectual and symbolic benefits that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples obtain from ecosystems through recreation, knowledge development, relaxation, and spiritual reflection.

Individual environmental assets

see Environmental assets.

Industry

An industry consists of a group of establishments engaged in the same, or similar, kinds of activity.

Input-Output industry group (IOIG)

Input-Output industry group (IOIG) is based on the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC). Input-Output (I-O) tables are published at this level of industry.

Input-Output product classification (IOPC)

Input-Output product classification (IOPC) is the detailed level product classification, organised according to the industry to which each product is primary. I-O tables are compiled at this level of product classification.

Input-Output product group (IOPG)

Input-Output product group (IOPG) is a group of IOPCs aggregated to the IOIG to which they are primary. I-O tables are published at this level of product classification.

Input-Output tables

Input-Output tables are a means of presenting a detailed analysis of the process of production and the use of goods and services (products) and the income generated in the production process. They can be either in the form of (a) supply and use tables or (b) symmetric input and output tables.

Institutional sectors

The resident units that make up the total economy are grouped into four mutually exclusive institutional sectors; namely, the non-financial corporations sector; the financial corporations sector; the general government sector; and the household sector, which includes residential households, unincorporated enterprises and non-profit institutions serving households in the Australian System of National Accounts.

Institutional unit

An economic entity that is capable, in its own right, of owning assets, incurring liabilities, engaging in economic activities and engaging in transactions with other entities.

Intermediate ecosystem services

See Ecosystem services, Intra- and inter-ecosystem flows.

Intermediate usage

Intermediate usage consists of the value of the goods and services used as inputs by a process of production, excluding compensation of employees and the consumption of fixed capital. Intermediate usage can also be defined as intermediate consumption.

Internal tourism consumption

Internal tourism consumption consists of all tourism consumption of visitors within Australia, both resident and non-resident. It is the sum of domestic tourism consumption and international tourism consumption.

International tourism consumption

International tourism consumption consists of the tourism consumption with Australia by non-residents on tourism related products. It is also referred to as internal tourism consumption by international visitors.

Intra- and inter-ecosystem flows

The flows in ecosystem accounting are of two types. First, there are flows within and between ecosystem assets that reflect ongoing ecosystem processes – these are referred to as intra-ecosystem flows and inter-ecosystem flows. The recognition of inter-ecosystem flows highlights the dependencies between different ecosystem assets (e.g. wetlands are dependent on flows of water from further up the river basin). Second, there are flows reflecting that people, through economic and other human activity, take advantage of the multitude of resources and processes that are generated by ecosystem assets – collectively these flows are known as ecosystem services (SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting 2012, paras. 2.13-2.14).

Land

Land consists of the ground, including the soil covering and any associated surface waters, over which ownership rights are enforced and from which economic benefits can be derived by their owners by holding or using them.

Land cover

Land cover refers to the observed physical and biological cover of the Earth’s surface and includes natural vegetation, abiotic (non-living) surfaces and inland water bodies such as rivers, lakes and reservoirs (SEEA Central Framework, para. 5.257).

Land cover/Ecosystem functional unit

A land cover/ecosystem functional unit (LCEU) is defined, in most terrestrial areas, by areas satisfying a pre-determined set of factors relating to the characteristics of an ecosystem. Examples of factors include land cover type, water resources, and soil type (SEEA, 2012, para. 2.56). LCEU may be considered to represent ecosystem assets and LCEU may often reflect the common conception of ecosystems (e.g. forests, wetlands, deserts, etc.). Generally, LCEU represents the middle level of the model that is used to define areas for the purposes of ecosystem accounting. An ecosystem accounting unit (reflecting a landscape perspective) will generally have a number of different LCEU types. See also Basic spatial units, Ecosystem accounting units, Ecosystem assets.

Macroalgae

Macroalgae is a collective term used for seaweeds and other benthic (attached to the bottom) marine algae that are generally visible to the naked eye. Larger macroalgae are also referred to as seaweeds, although they are not really 'weeds'. In this report, macroalgae are treated as marine plants because they are photosynthetic (convert sunlight into food) and have similar ecological roles to other plants. However, macroalgae differ from other marine plants such as seagrasses and mangroves in that macroalgae lack roots, leafy shoots, flowers, and vascular tissues. They are distinguished from microalgae (e.g. diatoms, phytoplankton, and the zooxanthellae that live in coral tissue), which require a microscope to be observed.

Market output

Market output is output that is sold at prices that are economically significant or otherwise disposed of on the market, or intended for sale or disposal on the market.

Market prices

Market prices are the amounts of money that willing buyers pay to acquire goods, services or assets from willing sellers (SNA, 2008, para. 3.119). For more detail, see the SEEA Central Framework Section 2.7, and 2008 SNA Chapter 6. See also Exchange values.

Natural capital

The term 'natural capital' is not defined in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. It commonly refers to all types of environmental assets as defined in the SEEA Central Framework. Natural capital has a broader scope than ecosystem assets, as defined in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting, because it includes mineral and energy resources. Generally, natural capital incorporates broad notions of the set of services from ecosystems in line with the accounting for ecosystem assets described in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. In this regard, although aligned in bio-physical terms, natural capital may be considered a broader measure than the measures of environmental assets that are described in the SEEA Central Framework which are limited to consideration of material/SNA benefits. It is noted that while natural capital would usually incorporate all ecosystem assets there is ample evidence to indicate that very few, if any, ecosystems are uninfluenced by humans and hence there are few ecosystem assets that might be considered purely 'natural'. See Benefits, Ecosystem capital, Ecosystem assets, Environmental assets, Natural resources.

Natural resource management (NRM) regions

Natural resource management regions are administrative regions primarily used to report on the Australian Government's Caring for our Country investments but are also used for environmental and agricultural reporting. They are based on catchments or bioregions. The boundaries of NRM regions are managed by the Commonwealth Department of Environment. NRM regions change occasionally as States and Territories revise their boundaries.

Natural resources

In the SEEA Central Framework, natural resources include all natural biological resources (including timber and aquatic resources); mineral and energy resources; soil and water resources (see para. 5.18). In this definition, land is a distinct type of environmental asset, and is not considered to be a natural resource (see SEEA Central Framework, paras. 5.19-5.23.). In the System of National Accounts, natural resources are defined as non-produced non-financial assets, consisting of land; mineral and energy resources; native standing timber; and radio spectra. Natural resources are defined in both the SEEA and SNA to include only non-produced environmental assets; that is, they are not considered to have come into existence as outputs of processes that fall within the production boundary of the SNA. A distinction is thus made between 'natural' and 'cultivated' environmental assets. See also Environmental assets, Ecosystem assets and Natural capital.

Net operating surplus (NOS)

Net operating surplus equals gross operating surplus less consumption of fixed capital.

Net primary productivity (NPP)

Net primary productivity is defined as the net flux of carbon from the atmosphere into green plants per unit time. NPP is a fundamental ecological variable. It measures the energy input into the biosphere and terrestrial carbon dioxide assimilation, and also indicates the condition of the land surface area and status of a wide range of ecological processes.

Non-market output

Non-market output consists of goods and services produced by any institutional unit that are supplied free or at prices that are not economically significant.

Non-produced assets

Non-produced assets are non-financial assets that come into existence other than through processes of production. Non-produced assets are assets that occur in nature and where ownership has been enforced or transferred. Environmental assets over which ownership rights have not, or cannot, be enforced, such as international waters or air space, are excluded. They consist of natural resources (such as land, mineral and energy resources, native standing timber and radio spectra); contracts, leases and licences; and purchased goodwill and marketing assets. Purchased goodwill and marketing assets are not included in the Australian System of National Accounts.

Other subsidies on production

Other subsidies on production consists of all subsidies, except subsidies on products, which resident enterprises may receive as a consequence of engaging in production. Other subsidies on production include: subsidies related to the payroll or workforce numbers, including subsidies payable on the total wage or salary bill, on numbers employed, or on the employment of particular types of persons (e.g. persons with disabilities or persons who have been unemployed for a long period).

Other taxes on production

Other taxes on production consists of all taxes that enterprises incur as a result of engaging in production, except taxes on products. Other taxes on production include: taxes related to the payroll or workforce numbers excluding compulsory social security contributions paid by employers and any taxes paid by the employees themselves out of their wages or salaries; recurrent taxes on land, buildings or other structures; some business and professional licences where no service is provided by the government in return; taxes on the use of fixed assets or other activities; stamp duties; taxes on pollution; and taxes on international transactions.

Outbound tourism consumption

Outbound tourism consumption consists of the tourism consumption by resident visitors outside of Australia while on an international trip. It is also referred to as tourism imports.

Output

Output consists of those goods and services that are produced within an establishment that become available for use outside that establishment, plus any goods and services produced for own final use.

Output for own final use

Output for own final use includes output for own final consumption and output for own gross fixed capital formation.

Payments for ecosystem services

Payments for ecosystem services (PES) are generally defined as voluntary and conditional transactions over well-defined ecosystem services between at least one supplier and one user (SEEA, 2012, para. 6.18).

Photosystem II inhibiting herbicides

Photosystem II inhibiting herbicides (PSII) are classes of chemicals whose primary mechanism of action is to block photosynthetic functions; these comprise more than half of all currently utilised herbicides. Of major importance as photosynthesis inhibitors are the chemical groups of ureas, amides, triazines, triazinones, pyridazinones, carbamates and nitrophenols. These compounds all share the common feature that they block photosystem II-dependent Hill-reactions (or PSII inhibitors).

Primary incomes

Primary incomes consist of incomes that accrue to institutional units as a consequence of their involvement in processes of production or their ownership of assets that may be needed for the purposes of production. They are payable out of the value added created by production. The primary incomes that accrue by lending or renting financial or non-produced non-financial natural resource assets, including land, to other units for use in production are described as 'property incomes'. Receipts from taxes on production and imports are treated as primary incomes of governments even though not all of them may be recorded as payable out of the value added of enterprises. Primary incomes exclude social contributions and benefits, current taxes on income, wealth, etc. and other current transfers. They include gross operating surplus, compensation of employees and gross mixed income.

Produced assets

Produced assets are non-financial assets that have come into existence as outputs from production processes. Produced assets consist of fixed assets, inventories and valuables. However, valuables are not included in the Australian System of National Accounts.

Provisioning services

Provisioning services reflect contributions to the benefits produced by or in the ecosystem, for example a fish, or a plant with pharmaceutical properties. The associated benefits may be provided in agricultural systems, as well as within semi-natural and natural ecosystems (SEEA, 2012, para. 3.4(i)). See also Ecosystem services, Regulating services, Cultural services, Recreational services.

Purchaser's price

The purchasers' price is the amount paid by the purchaser, excluding any deductible tax, in order to take delivery of a unit of a good or service at the time and place required by the purchaser. The purchaser's price of a good includes any transport charges paid separately by the purchaser to take delivery at the required time and place. Purchasers' prices are also known as current prices.

Regulating services

Regulating services result from the capacity of ecosystems to regulate climate, hydrological and bio-chemical cycles, earth surface processes, and a variety of biological processes (SEEA, 2012 para. 3.4(ii)). Regulating services are also commonly referred to as 'regulation and maintenance services'. These two terms are synonymous in the context of the definition of ecosystem services used in SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. See also Ecosystem services, Provisioning services, Cultural services.

Relative standard error (RSE)

A Standard Error (SE) measure indicates the extent to which a survey estimate is likely to deviate from the true population and is expressed as a number. The Relative Standard Error is the standard error expressed as a fraction of the estimate and is usually displayed as a percentage. Estimates with a RSE of 25 per cent or greater are subject to high sampling error and should be used with caution. The reliability of estimates can also be assessed in terms of a confidence interval. Confidence intervals represent the range in which the population value is likely to lie. They are constructed using the estimate of the population value and its associated standard error. For example, there is approximately a 95% chance (i.e. 19 chances in 20) that the population value lies within two standard errors of the estimates, so the 95% confidence interval is equal to the estimate plus or minus two standard errors (Literacy Stats, ABS website).

Resource rent

Resource rent is a component of economic rent, specifically representing the rent of a natural resource that is extracted or used by a company or industry. It is derived from standard SNA measures of gross operating surplus by deducting specific subsidies, adding back specific taxes and deducting the user costs of produced assets (itself composed of consumption of fixed capital and the return to produced assets). Resource rent is composed of depletion and the net return to non-produced (environmental) assets. This publication also estimates an analogous 'tourism rent' value for non-produced tourism assets which are not exclusively environmental assets.

Return to produced assets

The return to produced assets is a component of gross operating surplus. Return to produced assets is calculated by multiplying the selected rate of return by net capital stock. Rates of return can be general interest rates such as a long term government bond rate or a known interest rate specific to the business or industry in question.

Species abundance

Species abundance is a measure of the absolute number of a particular species in an area.

Species richness

Species richness is a measure of the number of different species in an area.

Subsidies on products

Subsidies on products are subsidies payable per unit of a good or service. The subsidy may be a specific amount of money per unit of quantity of a good or service (quantity being measured either in terms of discrete units or continuous physical variables such as volume, weight, strength, distance, time, etc.), or it may be calculated ad valorem as a specified percentage of the price per unit. A subsidy may also be calculated as the difference between a specified target price and the market price actually paid by a purchaser. A subsidy on a product usually becomes payable when the product is produced, sold or imported, but it may also become payable in other circumstances, such as when a product is exported, leased, transferred, delivered or used for own consumption or own capital formation.

Supply and use tables

Supply and use tables are matrices that record how supplies of different kinds of goods and services originate from domestic industries and imports, and how those supplies are allocated between various intermediate or final uses, including exports.

System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA)

The central framework of the System of Environmental and Economic Accounting (SEEA) is an international statistical standard for environmental-economic accounts ('environmental accounts'). It is a multipurpose conceptual framework for understanding the interactions between the economy and the environment, and for describing stocks and changes in stocks of environmental assets. It is consistent with the SNA.

System of National Accounts (SNA)

The System of National Accounts is a statistical framework that provides a comprehensive, consistent and flexible set of macroeconomic accounts for policymaking, analysis and research purposes. It has been produced and is released under the auspices of the United Nations, the European Commission, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group. The Australian System of National Accounts (ASNA) is based on the 2008 edition of SNA (2008 SNA), which is the current international standard.

Taxes less subsidies on production and imports

Defined as taxes on products plus other taxes on production less subsidies on products less other subsidies on production.

Taxes on production and imports

This category consists of taxes on products and other taxes on production. It does not include any taxes on the profits or other income received by an enterprise. These taxes are payable irrespective of the profitability of the production process. They may be payable on the land, fixed assets or labour employed in the production process, or on certain activities or transactions. A tax on a product usually becomes payable when it is produced, sold or imported, but it may also become payable in other circumstances, such as when a good is exported, leased, transferred, delivered, or used for own consumption or own capital formation (see Chapter 7 of 2008 SNA for more details).

Taxes on products

Taxes on products are taxes payable per unit of quantity of a good or service. The tax may be a specific amount of money per unit of quantity of a good or service (quantity being measured either in terms of discrete units or continuous physical variables such as volume, weight, strength, distance, time, etc.), or it may be calculated ad valorem as a specified percentage of the price per unit or value of the goods or services transacted. A tax on a product usually becomes payable when the product is produced, sold or imported, but it may also become payable in other circumstances, such as when a good is exported, leased, transferred, delivered, or used for own consumption or own capital formation.

Total nitrogen (TN)

Total nitrogen (TN) is an essential nutrient for plants and animals. An excess amount of nitrogen in a waterway may lead to low levels of dissolved oxygen, and negatively alter various plant life and organisms. Sources of nitrogen include: wastewater treatment plants; runoff from fertilised lawns and crop areas; failing septic systems; runoff from animal manure and storage areas; and industrial discharges that contain corrosion inhibitors.

Total phosphorous (TP)

Total phosphorus (TP) is defined as compounds that give rise to phosphate ions. This is a very broad group including many natural and anthropogenic substances, either containing phosphate or decomposing into it. These compounds include salts such as trisodium phosphate, calcium hydroxyapatite, polyphosphates and organophosphates.The vast number and variety of molecular structures making up organic chemistry (that is, compounds based on carbon atoms) is mirrored in the chemistry of compounds based on phosphorus. This variety is based on the orthophosphates and the long-chain polyphosphates, compounds in which phosphate groups are linked by oxygen.

Total suspended solids (TSS)

Total suspended solids (TSS) is a water quality measurement. TSS measures the mass of fine inorganic particles suspended in the water.

Tourism

Tourism comprises the activities of visitors.

Tourism characteristic industries

Tourism characteristics industries are those industries that would either cease to exist in their present form, producing their present products, or would be significantly affected if tourism were to cease. Under the international Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) standards, core lists of tourism characteristic industries, based on the significance of their link to tourism in the worldwide context, are recommended for implementation to facilitate international comparison. In the Australian TSA, an industry is deemed to be a country-specific tourism characteristic industry when at least 25 per cent of its output is consumed by visitors.

Tourism consumption

Tourism consumption consists of tourism expenditure plus imputed consumption by resident and non-resident visitors on tourism related products, including those sold at prices that are not economically significant.

Tourism expenditure

Tourism expenditure consists of the amount paid by a visitor or on behalf of a visitor for and during his/her trip and stay at the destination.

Visitor

A visitor is defined as any person taking a trip to a main destination outside his/her usual environment, for less than a year, for any main purpose (business, leisure or other personal purpose) other than to be employed by a resident entity in the country or place visited.

Wages and salaries

Wages and salaries consist of amounts payable in cash (including the value of any social contributions, income taxes, fringe benefits tax, etc.) payable by the employee even if they are actually withheld by the employer for administrative convenience or other reasons and paid directly to third parties (such as social insurance schemes, tax authorities, etc.), on behalf of the employee. Wages and salaries may be paid as remuneration in kind instead of, or in addition to, remuneration in cash. Separation, termination and redundancy payments are also included in wages and salaries.