Accounting for aspects of biodiversity is complex and as such experimentation of biodiversity accounting by countries is less advanced than water or carbon accounting, for instance. This technical guidance document has been prepared in the context of the Advancing the SEEA-EEA project. It is aimed at practitioners who wish to collect and organize data to understand the status and trends of ecosystem and species diversity and incorporate this into the SEEA-EEA framework for national accounting. This document considers the concept of biodiversity in relation to ecosystem functioning and condition and its resilience in the context of national accounting. It reviews some (but not all) of the established approaches to assessing the extent and condition of ecosystem diversity and for measuring species diversity, and examines their suitability for accounting purposes. This document sets out the data mobilisation process for national scale data and considers the use of global datasets and models to inform Biodiversity Accounts and other accounts in the SEEA-EEA framework, such as Ecosystem Condition Accounts. To assist countries in implementing biodiversity accounting, this technical guidance document presents experimental Biodiversity Accounts drawing on case studies from around the world. These are presented using a three tiered approach based on data availability. Other experimental accounts for Ecosystem Condition Accounts and Ecosystem Capacity Accounts are also shown. This document also highlights issues for resolution and recommendations for testing, refining and validation in relation to biodiversity accounting.

This work was undertaken by the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) as part of the project Advancing the SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting. This note is part of a series of technical notes, developed as an input to the SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting Technical Guidance. The project is led by the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) in collaboration with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) through its The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity Office, and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). It is funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.