Biodiversity

An area that was not part of phase 1 but where new possibilities are emerging. The development of biodiversity indicators in consumption-based accounting is an active research area, extending coverage of land-use change and deforestation into an understanding of species impacts and natural resource degradation. SEI York has been working at the forefront of this research area in the UK as part of engagement with the UK’s Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Global Resource Initiative, and Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) Trade Hub.

Overview

PRINCE phase 2 provides a summary of the state of the art for assessing biodiversity impacts of commodity production and trade. We highlight the opportunities that already exist to incorporate biodiversity indicators into consumption-based models, along with the considerations that must be made to do this effectively for policy making.

Whilst this is an active field of research, we recommend that Sweden moves ahead in the immediate term with incorporating simple, ”fit for purpose”, metrics of biodiversity impacts into their consumption-based accounts. This will allow biodiversity to enter into policy discussions and processes around trade and sustainability. We also recommend that metrics and tools are kept under review to consider whether to incorporate new and potentially more complex measures. In particular, assessment should also be made of the potential to improve upon areas of biodiversity impact which are less well researched and/or where data are less readily available – for example, links between pollution and species loss, and impacts in non-terrestrial environments linked to consumption. Also vital will be continued support for the maintenance of datasets and tools to keep them current and responsive.