Nature-Based Tourism Accounting
The purpose of ecosystem service accounting is to quantify the main contributions of ecosystems to society and the economy and to report them in accounting tables that are compatible with the structures and practices used in traditional economic accounting.
In this report, we assess and value nature-based tourism (NBT), one of the mandatory services EU Member States are requested to quantify according to the amended Regulation (EU) No 691/2011 on European environmental economic accounts. NBT is a cultural ecosystem service in which people visit and enjoy destinations characterised by the presence of natural resources.
The proposed methodology was implemented using an updated version of a biophysical map that considers the impact of major fires. The approach was applied across different scales to estimate the impact of statistical data aggregation on the final results. At the EU level, statistical data on tourism were gathered at the NUTS (nomenclature of territorial units for statistics) 2 level (for 2000–2018) and at the NUTS 3 level (for 2021). In addition, a case study of Italy was conducted to apply the methodology at the municipal level.
Overall, from 2000 to 2018, Europe registered an increase in total overnight stays of 47.5 %, and an increase in NBT of 46.7 %; this growth was mainly caused by an increase in activities in the tourism sector over time. However, when assessing NBT in relation to the total number of overnight stays, we register a loss of 0.5 %.
The level of aggregation of overnights stays affects service use differently across the Member States. The impact appears extremely relevant when assessing the spatial pattern of NBT in Italy at the municipal level. The use of aggregated statistical data affects the results differently, depending on the dominant ecosystem types. Notably, among the regions where NBT was underestimated at the NUTS 2 level are those recognised as having significant tourism activity linked to nature, such as Valle d’Aosta (very important for mountain tourism) and Trentino-Alto Adige.
This study reduced the complexity of valuing cultural services and demonstrated the importance not only of creating specific national biophysical maps but also of using more specific statistical data.
ZULIAN Grazia;
LA NOTTE Alessandra;
GRAMMATIKOPOULOU Ioanna;
ZURBARAN NUCCI Mayra;
2024-10-09
Publications Office of the European Union
JRC138538
978-92-68-20096-4 (online),
1831-9424 (online),
EUR 32029,
OP KJ-NA-32-029-EN-N (online),
https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC138538,
10.2760/762803 (online),
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