1. Economy-wide Material Flow Accounts (EW-MFA) (point 4 of the agenda)
Eurostat – Unit E2
Renato Marra Campanale
Working Group on Environmental Accounts
Luxembourg, 9-10 March 2015

2. Introduction
Economy-wide material flow accounts (EW-MFA) belong to the first batch of modules included in Regulation (EU) 691/2011
The data production cycle is well established and data are frequently used by policy makers
Improvements learned from the last data collections
Ongoing work to add a new issue to the EW-MFA framework
The new EW-MFA manual

3. Data collection 2014 – response
Data collection was launched in September 2014
Reporting deadline 31 December 2014
26/28 EU countries reported data
2/4 (EFTA) and 2/3 (candidate)
17 countries reported until 2013
29 countries submitted quality reports

4. Data collection 2014 – revision
Tables C and E are required for EU-28 for the first time, as agreed by the WG in 2014
18 (!) Member States were not able to deliver consistently extra-EU-28 trade, i.e. reported at least partly extra-EU27
Eurostat is gap-filling data, in order to publish complete time series for aggregated EU-28, including extra-EU-28 trade by end of March 2015 (T+27m) …
… in addition to previous and more recent years actually reported
Remark: compared to previous data collections, the number of confidential cells increased. This will hinder the publication of EU aggregates at the most detailed level of material breakdown

5. Data collection 2015
The 2015 data collection will be launched by the end of August 2015
Transmission deadline is 31 December 2015
The EW-MFA questionnaire will not change (extra-EU28!)
Countries are kindly asked to send questionnaires as soon as possible, even before the deadline:
Early transmission to Eurostat allows for early start of validation!
If possible, time series ranging from 2000 to 2014 are appreciated

6. Early estimates

7. Early estimates
Based on – preferably national – data sources as well as COMEXT foreign trade database Eurostat will 'manually' produce early estimates for 2013 for the 28 EU Member States and EU totals at the most detailed material category breakdown.
Publication is planned for June 2015 (T+18m)
Based on regression modelling techniques and predictor variables (as presented at the 2014 meeting of the Working Group) as well as COMEXT foreign trade database Eurostat will produce early estimates for 2014 for the 28 Member States and EU totals at the level of four main material categories.
Publication is planned for September 2015 (T+9m)

8. Improving data quality
The data quality of some items – such as biomass from grazing, extraction of sand and gravel – could still be improved
The Task force gave general recommendation:
Explore the national agricultural institutions and services
Cooperate closely with your national geological surveys
Eurostat foreign trade data in principle record the bunkering of non- residents as an import. Vice versa, this might be a possibility to get the bunkering of national residents abroad

9. Adding 'circular material flows' to EW-MFA
High policy interest in adding this issue (also known as 'secondary raw material' or 'recycled material input') to the EW-MFA framework
Set in relation to the material input indicators, it allows to monitor progress in resource productivity due to increased efforts of recycling
The TF concluded that Eurostat shall experiment with existing data. Work has started in the context of the Environmental Data Centre on Waste

10. EW-MFA Manual (1) 2001: Methodological guide
Yearly: Eurostat updates the Compilation guidelines
2012 : SEEA-CF was adopted by the UN Statistical Commission as the first international standard for environmental-economic accounting

11. EW-MFA Manual (2) Key elements:
Structure: concepts / compilation / applications
Focus: legally binding tables and how do they relate to SEEA-CF
RME and “circular material flows” will be mentioned
May/June 2015: mature draft and written consultation with TF

12. Conclusions The Working Group is asked to:
Endorse Eurostat's objective to publish EU aggregates at the most detailed level of material categories
Agree with the schedule and approaches for early estimates
Acknowledge that further efforts are needed to improve data quality of certain domestic extraction items such as e.g. biomass from grazing, extraction of sand and gravel
Support Eurostat's work on adding 'circular material flows' to EW-MFA
Welcome the development of a manual for EW-MFA and agree on a procedure for adoption (written consultation?)