Indicators, green accounting and environment statistics - Information requirements for sustainable development

Since the "Earth Summit" in Rio de Janeiro 1992 the term "sustainable devel opment" determines the third and current phase of environmental policy. A p recise and commonly accepted definition of sustainable development (s.d.) i s still missing. There are, nevertheless, some elements in the philosophy o f sustainable development which-even if they are still vague-could be used as guidelines for a framework of "green" accounting and sustainability indi cators. Based on theoretical considerations, the German Federal Statistical Office has developed a framework for an Environmental Economic Accounting System. The objective is to add meaningful modules to the traditional Syste m of National Accounts which are designed to quantify the external (environ mental) effects of economic activities. The framework could already be real ised and published to an extent that is relevant for actual policy making i n Germany.