Abstract
The decision to provide for information on the state and development of natural resources in Norway was taken in the early seventies. The decision aimed at the establishment of resource accounts as well as of resource budgets, which were intended for the co-ordination and presentation of proposals for future resource use.
The system of Norwegian resource accounts (SRA), as of the start of its development, was designed as being fully compatible with national accounts. The inventory of existing resources as well as the functions they serve in human activities are seen as inputs to governmental decision-making. The SRA thus calls for two types of general classification. The ‘functional’ classification is primarily based on the physical characteristics of natural resources. The ‘managerial’ classification distinguishes material resources from environmental resources.
At a more detailed level, the SRA starts with measurement of stocks and equivalents of stocks of natural resources. It proceeds with an assessment of the services rendered by such resources and their uses in human activities. The circle is closed by the measurement of the impact of human activities on natural resources.
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