What is the difference between ecosystem accounts and statistics on land use?
In contrast to the statistics on land use, area balance sheets of the ecosystems are mainly based on ecological criteria. This means that the focus of area classification is on the ecological importance and relevance for ecosystem services rather than on the type of land use. Structuring the areas is based on the detailed national ecosystem classification comprising a total of 74 different classes.
While land use statistics are based on data of the Official Land Registry Information System (ALKIS), a multitude of additional geographical datasets such as satellite images, orthophotos and biotope maps are processed for the calculation of the ecosystem area balance sheet.
The area balance sheet of the ecosystems covers not only the terrestrial territory but also Germany's marine waters and the exclusive economic zone in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.