Blueprint for improved measurement of the international ocean economy An exploration of satellite accounting for ocean economic activity

• Published in: IDEAS Working Paper Series from RePEc Vol. 2021; no. 4; pp. 1 - 67
• Main Authors: Jolliffe, James, Jolly, Claire, Stevens, Barrie
• Format: Paper
• Language: English
• Published: Paris OECD Publishing 02.04.2021; Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD); Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
• Subjects: Accounting; Anthropogenic factors; Biodiversity; Biodiversity loss; Climate change; Climate effects; Complex systems; Economic activity; Economic analysis; Economic conditions; Economic impact; Economic models; Economic sectors; Economic statistics; Economics; Ecosystem services; Environmental economics; Environmental services; Experimentation; Fossil fuels; Holidays & special occasions; Human influences; Human populations; Linkages; Marine ecosystems; Marine environment; National accounts; Ocean models; Renewable energy; Risk reduction; Statistical methods; Statistics; Structural analysis; Sustainability; Value added; Well being
• ISSN: 1815-1965
• DOI: 10.1787/aff5375b-en

Sustainably managing the ocean requires reliable measures of the ocean’s contributions to society and the effects that human activities have on the marine environment. This paper informs current international discussions on the measurement of ocean economic activities. It summarises the extent to which the ocean is crucial to society, outlines national approaches to measuring ocean economies, establishes an OECD definition of ocean economic activities for statistical purposes, and introduces a plan to improve international ocean economy statistics through the pragmatic development of satellite accounts. By measuring the full range of ocean economic activities, this framework will improve evidence on ocean sustainability and lay the foundations for ocean accounts that include economic-environmental linkages.