ENVECO is a one-year project financed by Eurostat grants led by Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) in partnership with Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke). The first aim of the project is to develop novel remote sensing, machine learning and spatial analysis methods for accounting of forest ecosystems in the SEEA-EA (System of Environmental-Economic Accounting – Ecosystem Accounting) framework.
As a result, usefulness and quality of source data for forest ecosystem service accounting is improved and data gaps are filled, assisting statistical officials in Finland and abroad to generate repeatable, documented and quality-assessed work flows, and guiding better policy decisions which further helps the verification of progress towards the goals of national and international policies (e.g. Aichi Biodiversity Targets, Sustainable Development Goals).
The second aim of ENVECO is to address the data gap in existing material flow accounts which do not separate primary and secondary raw materials. Such distinction is essential to provide information on the volumes of the material recovery and recycling in the circular economy. As a result, the project contributes to the monitoring of the transition towards a circular economy in Finland, benefitting Statistics Finland in compilation of material flow accounts, decision makers and policy planners in the country, secondary material producing enterprises and the great public by quantifying and making the secondary material flows visible.
ENVECO Methodological Report available
ENVECO Webinar 25 January 2021
The project's final seminar was organized in webinar format on 25 January 2021, with total of 64 participants from more than 20 countries across Europe. The webinar highligted the results of research done in ENVECO to develop novel methods for material flow and ecosystem accounting. The webinar was split into two sessions. In the first session, we addressed secondary material flow accounts and related methods in the context of circular economy. The second session gave insights to the development of indicators for forest ecosystem accounting with the application of spatial modeling, remote sensing and machine learning.
Programme and presentations:
ENVECO Webinar Programme
Jukka Muukkonen (Statistics Finland): A brief review on material flow and ecosystem accounting as part of environmental accounting (SEEA)
Annika Johansson and Henri Virkkunen: Transition Towards Circular Economy. Secondary Material Flows in the Finnish Economy
Maija Holma: Providing data for circular material accounting
Annika Kangas: Forest ecosystem accounting
Pekka Hurskainen: Indicators from existing spatial data: forest fragmentation
Andras Balazs and Janne Mäyrä: Indicators from remote sensing using machine learning
Petteri Vihervaara: Discussion and conclusion of the webinar