A Workshop on Data Scope and Data Structures for National Material Accounts

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0509634GraedelIn a recent report from the U.S. National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council, the potential usefulness of material stock and flow accounts for informing national and corporate policy was pointed out, and it was recognized that a variety of organizations, universities, and governmental entities are collecting data that could begin to populate formal material accounts. Procedural and data gaps exist in this information, however, and the need for integration and supplementation of the existing data acquisition programs has not been studied.We propose to convene a workshop to explore these topics and their relationship to national material accounts (NMAs). An organizing committee would choose subjects and speakers from data-gathering organizations in the United States and elsewhere to address questions such as the following: (1) What should be the scope of NMAs (2) What materials should be included, in what priority order, and in what level of detail (3) Should sub-national (e.g., state or urban area) information be included (4) What data structures and formats are advisable (5) How might existing databases be integrated (6) How should MFA data be made widely availableIt is anticipated that a principal out come will be a multi-institution proposal to codify and implement some of the suggestions of the workshop.Broader ImpactsNational financial accounts are vital aspects of modern society, providing information for economics, government policy, business strategy, and many other areas. This workshop proposal will provide the framework for the development of national material accounts, a complementary accounting approach expected also to have great practical value in many areas of industrial, commercial and governmental activity. All of the potential uses of such information cannot be foreseen, but application to resource economics, industrial ecology, pollution assessment, and governmental policy are surely include. The eventual result of the workshop and its follow-on activities is expected to be a routinely used tool for industrial and societal analysis.