Establishing the Institutional Mechanism for Undertaking Natural Capital Accounting in the DENR

DENR Administrative Order No. 2025-07

Subject: Establishing the Institutional Mechanism for Undertaking Natural Capital Accounting in the DENR

Signed: January 15, 2025 . Pages: 11

Legal Basis

Pursuant to RA 11995 (Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System / PENCAS Act), EO 406 s. 1997 (Institutionalizing the Philippine Economic-Environmental and Natural Resources Accounting / PEENRA), Resolution No. 01 s. 2022 of the Inter-agency Committee on Environment and Natural Resources Statistics (IACENRS) adopting the Roadmap to Institutionalize NCA in the Philippines, and DAO 2023-01 (National ENR Geospatial Database under the Office of the Secretary).

SECTION 1. Basic Policy

The State shall institutionalize Natural Capital Accounting to develop a comprehensive information system and accounting framework that takes into consideration the role and contribution of natural capital and its impact on the country's economy.

SECTION 2. Objectives

1. Establish mechanisms to institutionalize and mainstream NCA in the DENR and improve coordination among its units
2. Provide a system for generation, collection, and compilation of NCA data and development of site-specific accounts to inform policies, plans, programs, and decision-making
3. Specify roles and responsibilities of concerned DENR Offices, bureaus, and attached agencies in implementing NCA in coordination with other implementing agencies

SECTION 3. Scope and Coverage

As main producer of NCA data under PENCAS, this Order guides establishment, adoption, use, and mainstreaming of NCA within DENR and its bureaus and attached agencies using the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) Central and subsystems, SEEA Ecosystem Accounting Framework, High Conservation Value Areas (HCVA) Framework or Sukat ng Kalikasan, and other NCA frameworks adopted by IACENRS and the PSA Board.

SECTION 4. Key Definitions

• Natural Capital Accounting (NCA) - accounting framework providing a systematic way of measuring and reporting on stocks and flows of natural capital, covering individual environmental assets/natural resources (water, ores, minerals, energy, timber, fish) as well as ecosystem assets, biodiversity, and ecosystem services
• Ecosystem Accounts - describe the environment in terms of mutually exclusive Ecosystem Assets, classified by Ecosystem Types (forests, wetlands, cropland, etc.)
• Ecosystem Services - benefits supplied by functions of ecosystems received by humanity; consist of provisioning, regulating/maintenance, and cultural services
• SEEA - framework integrating economic and environmental data for a comprehensive view of interrelationships between economy, environment, ecosystems, and stocks/changes in natural assets
• NCA Data Management System - data management system for generation, management, and sharing of NCA data including geospatial data
• Account Compiler - DENR offices that develop site-specific and area-based ecosystem accounts in priority ecosystem sites
• Valuation - determining value or worth, in physical and economic terms, of natural capital and its services at national and subnational levels

SECTION 5. Applications of NCA

NCA can be used to support:

• Common platform for evidence-informed and scenario-based planning, investment programming, target-setting, monitoring and evaluation
• Input to issuing permits or clearances for extractive activities
• Input to DENR planning tools (Integrated Watershed Management Plan, Forest Land Use Plans, Protected Area Management Plan)
• Evaluation tools (EIA, Strategic Environmental Assessment, comparative analysis of alternative natural resource management options)

Source: User-uploaded official DENR PDF (DAO-2025-07, 11 pages). Full operational sections including NCA roles/responsibilities and reporting in source PDF.