SEEA-Water and IRWS Statistical standards for water information United Nations Statistics Division Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Outline The International Recommendations for Water Statistics (IRWS) The System of Environmental- Economic Accounts for Water (SEEA-W) The SEEA-Water and IRWS in the context of official statistics 5 th World Water Forum
International Recommendations for Water Statistics (IRWS) Tool to develop and strengthen water information system in countries Provides agreed definitions and classifications of water data items classified Uses a hierarchical structure Provides guidance on how to organize the data compilation Shows the link between these data items and: Standard tables of the SEEA-W International water indicators (e.g WWDR)
The SEEA-Water System approach to water information Presents stocks and flows of water Links the physical information to the economic accounts Shows water-related expenditures investment in hydraulic infrastructures fees paid by whom costs of collection, purification, distribution and treatment water rights Set of standard tables
Water statistics - IRWS Often developed to address individual issues or questions Often not easy to relate to other issues Often not able to be integrated with economic statistics Difficult to be sure all relevant information is included Data items
Water accounts SEEA-Water Is a framework for organising data items using a system approach Organise information in terms of stocks and flows Cover the hydrological system and links it to the economy Help to make sense of the entire picture by showing the inter-relationships Data items organised within a frame
Water statistics, accounts and audiences Information pyramid Audiences Increasing aggregation of information Macro data Micro data Water indicators Water accounts Water statistics e.g. basic aggregates at the data item level, time series Amount of data e.g. data regarding water resources, water supply and sanitation, or economic activities and water e.g. Decision makers, and the general public, managers analysts and researchers e.g. Managers, analysts and researchers e.g. Researchers and others conducting detailed analytical research
Water Accounts
The SEEA-Water and IRWS in the context of official statistics Other water statistics Systems frameworks SEEA Energy balances SEEA-W SEEA-E Output frameworks Intermediate frameworks e.g. IRWS e.g. IRES Input frameworks Compilation Material Compilation Material Cross functional frameworks ISIC, CPC, Asset Classification, Class. of Environmental Activities, Class. of Physical Flows etc Data Data Quality Assessment Frameworks Metadata and documentation (e.g. SDMX)
SEEA-Water and IRWS international statistical standards SEEA-Water was adopted as an interim international statistical standard by the United Nations Statistical Commission (UNSC) at its 38 th session in March 2007 IRWS was adopted as an international recommendations by the UNSC at its 41 st session in Feb 2010 UNSC recommended their implementation in countries UNSD under the auspices of the UN Committee of Experts on Environmental-Economic Accounting is leading the implementation strategy for the SEEA-Water and IRWS in collaboration with the regional commissions and water institutions (e.g. WWAP, UN Water, SG Advisory Board on Water, etc.)
48 Countries have, or are planning, water accounts Global Assessment of Water Statistics and Water Accounts (GAWSWA) + Additional information http://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/doc09/bg-wateraccounts.pdf Andorra Armenia Australia Austria Bahamas Bahrain Botswana Brazil Canada China Colombia Denmark Dominican Republic Egypt Estonia France Germany Greece Guatemala Hungary Iraq Israel Italy Jordan Lebanon Mauritius Mexico Namibia Netherlands Norway New Zealand Occupied Palestinian Terr. Oman Panama Peru Philippines Portugal Romania Singapore Tunisia Turkey South Africa Spain Sweden Switzerland Trinidad and Tobago Ukraine United Kingdom
5 th World Water Forum Topic 6.4 Data for all The 5 th World Water Forum agreed: Lack of integrated water data to inform decision making Need not only physical data on quantity but also data on quality and monetary data Need strong legal and institutional arrangements The SEEA-Water offers a coherent and valuable framework to support national data collection and is an important part of the way forward
Thank you Contact: seea@un.org For more information please see: The SEEA-W http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/seeaw.asp The IRWS http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/irws/ http://unstats.un.org/unsd/statcom/doc10/bg-waterstats.pdf Global Assessment for Water Statistics and Accounts http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/ceea/surveywas.asp Strategy for the implementation of the SEEA-W and IRWS http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/ceea/meetings/unceea-4-16.pdf Archive of publications on environmental-economic accounting http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/ceea/archive/introduction.asp
Physical water assets: Standard Table XII physical units EA.131 Surface water EA.1311 Reservoirs EA.1312 Lakes EA.1313 Rivers EA.1314 Snow, Ice and Glaciers EA.132 Groundwater EA.133 Soil water Total Opening Stocks Increases in stocks Returns from the economy Precipitation Inflows from upstream territories from other resources in t territory Decreases in stocks Evaporation Transpiration Precipitation (dew, mist, rain, sleet, hail, snow) Abstraction of which Sustainable use Surface water (rivers, lakes, glaciers) Evaporation/Actual evapotranspiration Outflows to downstream territories to the sea to other resources in the territory Sea/ocean Groundwater (aquifers) Evaporation Soilwater Infiltratio n Other changes in volume Closing Stocks
Basic concepts and definitions From the environment (abstraction) Consumption Use Economic activity/ Households Evapotranspiration Supply To the environment (returns) From another economic unit Consumption To another economic unit
From the environm ent Physical water use: Standard Table I U1 - Total abstraction (=a.1+a.2= b.1+b.2): a.1- Abstraction for own use a.2- Abstraction for distribution b.1- From water resources: Surface water Groundwater Agriculture Energy Mining and manufacture 1-3 Water supply Industries (by ISIC categories) 5-33, 41-43 35 36 37 Includes green water Sewerage 38, 39, 45-99 Services Tot al Households Physical units Rest of the world Total Within the economy Soil water b.2- From other sources Collection of precipitation Abstraction from the sea U2 - Use of water received from other economic units U=U1+U2 - Total use of water
Physical water supply: Standard Table II Physical units 1-3 Industries (by ISIC categories) 5-33, 41-43 35 36 37 38, 39, 45-99 Tot al Ho use hol ds Res t of the worl d Tot al Within the economy To the environm ent S1 - Supply of water to other economic units of which: Reused water Wastewater to sewerage S2 - Total returns (= d.1+d.2) d.1- To water resources Surface water Groundwater Soil water d.2- To other sources (e.g. Sea water) S - Total supply of water (= S1+S2) Consumption (U - S)
Hybrid water use: Standard Table VI Physical and monetary units Intermediate consumption of industries (by ISIC categories) 35 Actual final consumption Households 1-3 5-33, 41-43 Tot al of which: Hydro 36 37 38, 39, 45-99 Total industry Final cons ump tion expe nditu res Soci al trans fers in kind from Gove rnme nt and NPIS Hs Total Gover nment Capital formatio n Ex por ts Tot al use s at pur cha ser s pric e Total intermediate consumption and use (monetary units) of which: Natural water (CPC 1800) Sewerage services (CPC 941) Total value added (monetary units) Total use of water (physical units) U1 - Total Abstraction of which: a.1- Abstraction for own use U2 - Use of water received from other economic units
Summary The SEEA-Water and the IRWS are supplementary publications forming the information system for water in the context of official statistics They constitute a tool to develop and organize water information in a coherent system Allow for integrating information from different sources also with economic information Allow for the identification of data gaps and overlaps Provide a useful tool for Integrated Water Resources Management Provide a tool for water monitoring and policy analysis not only in the water context but more broadly