Natural capital assets are those aspects of the natural environment that underpin delivery of ecosystem services or benefits (see figure). In relation to natural capital metrics, UKEOF aims to identify relevant environmental observation priorities and gaps. Maintaining a healthy stock of natural capital assets is a key government objective and meeting that objective requires an effective monitoring strategy.

Although the Natural Capital Committee (NCC) suggests that for many assets we have good data about their quantity and distribution, little has been done to-date at a strategic level to optimise environmental observation for the purpose of natural capital assessment.

To address this, the UKEOF Natural Capital Working Group (NCWG) is coordinating activities to bring the relevant organisations together in order to develop a monitoring strategy for natural capital. The UKEOF partners include most of the statutory delivery and operational players who together collect and hold much of the essential data.

Diagram: Metrics for natural capital assets (text description at end of page)

 

Our role

The objectives of the Natural Capital Working Group are:

  1. Inform partners about the latest developments on quantifying Natural Capital at UK and international level
  2. Analyse the partners’ strategies to pinpoint which partners have most relevance and responsibility, and identify which are already leading. This is achieved through maintenance of a partners’ natural capital activity table
  3. Identify existing monitoring which can contribute to Natural Capital Assessment
  4. Update the UKEOF catalogue for key relevant datasets e.g. by broad habitat
  5. Identify areas where the observations are weakest for metrics, and where work to improve them is already underway (to avoid duplication)
  6. Consider and compare approaches across the UK in order to understand different approaches, and enable coordination where diverging approaches are adopted.  This would focus on practicalities of monitoring and/or high level strategies
  7. Summarise the outcomes and propose ways forward.

Outputs

NCWG Habitat Condition Indicators advice note cover
Habitat Condition Indicators
Advice note: Considers why quality/condition indicators are important for monitoring natural capital. It is aimed at government agencies as well as organisations and businesses who are looking to apply the natural capital approach
View advice note
NCWG Underpinning Natural Capital Approaches advice note cover
Underpinning UK Natural Capital Approaches
Leaflet: aims to share knowledge and best practice for incorporating existing environmental monitoring into a natural capital management approach
View leaflet
Report
Environmental Observation to Support Natural Capital Assessment
Workshop report (2017)
Download report

Member organisations

If you would like to get involved or find out more information please contact the secretariat on office@ukeof.org.uk.

Current member organisations are:

[C] Corresponding member
[A] Alternate

Description of figure on this page

The figure shows three boxes arranged horizontally. The box titles are: 'Metrics for Natural Assets', 'Metrics for major land-use categories' and 'Metrics for Benefits (Values)'. Within each box are lists, as follows:

Metrics for Natural Assets (left box)

Species; Ecological communities; Soils; Freshwater; Land; Atmosphere; Minerals; Sub-soil Assets; Coasts; Oceans.

Additional text in this box reads: 'As well as the natural processes and functions that underpin their operation'.

Metrics for major land-use categories (middle box)

Mountains, Moors and Heaths; Enclosed Farmland; Semi-natural Grasslands; Woodlands; Freshwaters; Coastal Margins; Urban; Marine.

Metrics for Benefits (right box)

Food; Fibre (including Timber); Energy; Freshwater; Clean Air; Recreation; Aesthetics; Amenity; Wildlife; Equable climate. 

Large arrows pointing both to the left and to the right connect these boxes, indicating that they are linked.

An arrow extends from the bottom of the 'Metrics for Natural Assets' box to a block of text. This text reads 'Direct links between assets and benefits are complex and difficult to measure'. The arrow is labelled 'Dispersed, interconnected and dynamic'.

A second arrow links this text block to the 'Metrics for Benefits' box.

[End of figure description]