This paper addresses some of the issues involved in expanding national accounts to include natural capital, focusing on services provided by freshwater ecosystems. It examines valuation challenges and opportunities in light of evolving global frameworks like the UN’s System of Environmental Accounting – Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA EA), now adopted by over 90 countries.
We explore suitable economic valuation methods for key categories of Water Ecosystem Services (WES), i.e., provisioning, regulating, and cultural services, as well as and their integration into UK accounting and water management systems. We assess the applicability of SEEA EA compliant valuation methods for WES by combining a top down and a bottom-up approaches. The goal is to evaluate how these methods have been applied empirically, their alignment with accounting principles, and their feasibility for UK WES accounts. Our findings inform the practical use of SEEA EA valuation hierarchy and help identify suitable methods for UK implementation.