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Marine Natural Capital Hub: mNCEA Outputs Library

The mNCEA Outputs Library brings together selected products developed through the Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment programme and showcases how they align with the stages of a natural capital workflow. While the full range of mNCEA materials is available through the main programme portal, this page highlights examples that directly illustrate how assets, ecosystem services, condition and benefits can be assessed in practice. The aim is to show how different tools, methods and evidence products produced during the programme fit within a coherent assessment framework and how they can be used individually or together to support decision making.

The examples presented here have been chosen because they demonstrate one or more elements of the workflow and provide practical illustrations of natural capital approaches in a marine context. This includes case studies, guidance, maps, models and analytical tools that were developed or refined through mNCEA. By organising these outputs within the workflow structure, the library helps users understand how each component contributes to the overall assessment process and how the methods developed through mNCEA can be applied across a range of policy and management settings.

You can access all published outputs from the mNCEA programme through the DEFRA Science Search portal: https://sciencesearch.defra.gov.uk/. Searching for the project code ME45 returns the full set of reports, datasets and evidence products developed under the marine theme of the programme. This provides a single route to locate any mNCEA output, including technical methods, valuation products, habitat assessments and supporting tools.
In some cases, individual mNCEA projects contribute to more than one stage of the natural capital workflow. Several outputs provide asset evidence while also informing condition assessment or link directly to ecosystem service evaluation. To maintain clarity within the library, each project has been placed in the section that best represents its primary contribution, while recognising that many have wider relevance across multiple themes. Two project codes within the ME45 series, ME4518 and ME4532, do not have associated outputs available on the platform and are therefore not included in the thematic categories.

Contents

  1. Marine Natural Capital Hub: Workflow
  2. mNCEA Outputs
    1. Assets
    2. Ecosystem Services
    3. Ecological Condition
    4. Benefits
    5. End to End Natural Capital Approaches

Marine Natural Capital Hub: Workflow

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mNCEA Outputs

Assets

Projects that develop understanding of the biological or physical features that underpin ecosystem service delivery. These include habitat mapping, ecological assessments and evidence on key asset classes such as pelagic systems, benthic habitats, saltmarsh and sediments.

Relevant projects:

  • ME4504 Nearshore water quality and pelagic asset status (CEFAS)
    • Assesses nearshore water quality and evaluates the condition of pelagic assets to understand how physical and biogeochemical processes influence service delivery. Provides evidence to support integrated coastal and marine management.
  • ME4505 Value of English saltmarshes as nursery grounds (CEFAS)
    • Quantifies the role of English saltmarshes as nursery habitats for commercially important fish species. Demonstrates their contribution to fisheries‑related ecosystem services and natural capital value.
  • ME4506 Opportunistic sediment sampling for blue carbon (CEFAS)
    • Uses opportunistic sampling to improve the evidence base for blue carbon stocks within marine sediments. Supports refinement of carbon accounting and valuation approaches.
  • ME4514 Inshore cetaceans monitoring (year 1) (Natural England)
    • Develops baseline methods for monitoring inshore cetacean populations and linking distribution and condition to ecosystem service delivery. Provides the foundation for long‑term natural capital integration.
  • ME4517 Pelagic Monitoring Programme (year 1) (Environment Agency)
    • Establishes initial indicators and monitoring design for pelagic ecosystems, linking ecological condition to natural capital metrics. Forms the baseline for multi‑year programme development.
  • ME4521 Pelagic Monitoring Programme (year 2) (Environment Agency) 
    • Enhances year 1 outputs by refining pelagic indicators and improving integration between ecosystem condition and service assessments. Strengthens offshore monitoring evidence for natural capital use.
  • ME4524 Marine Mammal Monitoring Innovation (year 3)(IMarEST & JNCC)
    • Develops and tests new tools and technologies to improve the efficiency and consistency of marine mammal monitoring. Supports condition assessment and service relevance evaluations within natural capital frameworks.
  • ME4525 Marine Birds (years 1 to 3) (JNCC)
    • Delivers multi‑year development of monitoring indicators for marine birds, linking population and behavioural evidence to natural capital assessments. Enables more consistent condition reporting across UK waters.
  • ME4528 Pelagic Monitoring Programme (year 3) (Environment Agency & Cefas)
    • Completes the development of the pelagic monitoring framework by finalising indicators, data workflows and natural capital linkages. Provides operational outputs suitable for integration into routine monitoring.
  • ME4527 Marine Natural Capital Approach to Achieving Good Environmental Status (mNCEA year 3) (JNCC) contributes to multiple parts of the natural capital workflow, but Chapters 1 and 2 are specifically focuses
    • Delivers a comprehensive natural capital framing for GES assessments across the full workflow, while Chapters 1 and 2 specifically focus on assets, condition and the foundational components needed to assess service delivery pathways.

Ecosystem Services

Projects that assess, value or analyse the benefits that flow from marine assets. These often pilot valuation methods, logic chains or service assessment frameworks.

Relevant projects:

  • ME4501 Natural capital account for the industrial sandeel fishery (Natural England)
    • Develops a natural capital account for the industrial sandeel fishery to quantify the benefits derived from the stock and associated ecosystems. Pilots asset, flow and value components to support sustainable fisheries management.
  • ME4502 North Sea carbon and fishery trade offs (CEFAS) 
    • Assesses interactions between carbon storage, carbon sequestration and fishing activity in the North Sea. Provides evidence on trade offs to support management decisions that consider both climate and fisheries outcomes.
  • ME4503 Rapid review of marine natural capital asset classes and logic chains (CEFAS)
    • Produces a rapid synthesis of asset classes and associated logic chains to clarify how marine assets support ecosystem services. Informs consistent application of natural capital methods across projects.
  • ME4507 Cultural values provided by UK fisheries (Natural England)
    • Explores the cultural, heritage and community values associated with UK fisheries. Develops methods for capturing non‑monetary and socio‑cultural benefits within natural capital assessments.
  • ME4510 Systematic review and SWOT of marine natural capital approaches (JNCC)
    • Conducts a systematic review and SWOT analysis of current marine natural capital methods. Identifies strengths, limitations and future opportunities for improving assessment and valuation.
  • ME4511 Natural capital approach for improving marine planning (JNCC)
    • Tests how natural capital evidence can be integrated into marine planning processes to improve transparency and decision quality. Develops frameworks linking assets, services and societal benefits.
  • ME4520 Framework to support impact evaluation of HPMAs (Natural England)
    • Develops a framework to evaluate the ecological and socio‑economic impacts of Highly Protected Marine Areas using natural capital principles. Provides logic chains and indicators to assess change over time.
  • ME4535 A natural capital approach to improving MPA conservation advice (year 3) (JNCC)
    • Evaluates the advantages of applying a marine natural capital approach to improve and strengthen JNCC's Marine Protected Area (MPA) Conservation Advice.

Ecological Condition

Projects improving the evidence base on ecological condition, monitoring innovation, or the status of key assets. These often support natural capital assessments by strengthening the link between pressures, state and resilience.

Relevant projects:

  • ME4514 Inshore cetaceans monitoring (year 1) (Natural England & Marine Biological Association of the UK)
    • Develops approaches for monitoring inshore cetacean populations and understanding how their distribution and condition relate to ecosystem service delivery. Provides baseline methods to support future natural capital integration.
  • ME4517 Pelagic Monitoring Programme (year 1) (Environment Agency)
    • Establishes initial methods for monitoring pelagic ecosystems and linking physical, chemical and biological data to natural capital indicators. Lays the foundation for long‑term pelagic condition assessment.
  • ME4521 Pelagic Monitoring Programme (year 2) (Environment Agency)
    • Builds on year 1 by refining indicators and improving integration of pelagic asset condition with ecosystem service evidence. Strengthens the monitoring framework for offshore waters.
  • ME4522 Defra Marine and Fisheries Monitoring Evolution (Howell Marine Consulting Ltd)
    • Supports the evolution of Defra’s monitoring programmes by embedding natural capital principles across marine and fisheries evidence streams. Provides guidance on future monitoring design and alignment.
  • ME4524 Marine Mammal Monitoring Innovation (year 3) (Joint Nature Conservation Committee)
    • Develops and tests innovative tools and methods for marine mammal monitoring, including technologies that can improve assessments of condition and service relevance. Provides applied evidence for operational use.
  • ME4525 Marine Birds (years 1 to 3) (JNCC)
    • Delivers multi‑year development of monitoring methods and indicators for marine birds, linking population and behavioural data to natural capital assessments. Supports consistent long‑term condition reporting.
  • ME4526 Decision making for a thriving marine environment (mNCEA years 1-3) (MMO)
    • Focuses on improving how condition evidence is generated and used in decision‑making frameworks. Provides tools that connect monitoring outputs to natural capital assessments and policy needs.
  • ME4528 Pelagic Monitoring Programme (year 3) (Environment Agency in partnership with Cefas)
    • Completes the development of the pelagic monitoring framework by finalising indicators, workflows and natural capital linkages. Provides operational outputs for use in routine monitoring.
  • ME4530 Deep learning for benthic biodiversity monitoring (University of Plymouth)
    • Applies deep learning and automation to analyse benthic imagery and improve biodiversity assessment efficiency. Supports more rapid and scalable condition monitoring for natural capital workflows.

Benefits

Projects improving the evidence base on the benefits that society may get from marine ecosystems. 

  • ME4501 - A Natural Capital Account for the Industrial Sandeel Fishery (Natural England)
  • ME4502 - North Sea carbon, Fishing, Marine Protected Areas and Offshore Wind Farms Trade-offs (Cefas)
  • ME4505 - Using the Natural Capital Approach to review the value of English saltmarshes as nursery grounds for commercially important fish. Case study: Sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax (L.) (Cefas and Environment Agency)
  • ME4506 - Opportunistic sediment sampling in the North Sea for Blue Carbon to begin to address evidence gaps for carbon stocks and fluxes in UK continental shelf sediments (Cefas)
  • ME4507 - Review of the cultural values provided by UK fisheries (mNCEA proof-of-concept) (Natural England)
  • ME4510 - Systematic review and SWOT of marine natural capital approaches (mNCEA proof-of-concept) (JNCC)

End to End Natural Capital Approaches

Projects that apply the full natural capital workflow from assets to services to valuation. These include spatial assessments, place based approaches, planning integration and comprehensive frameworks.

Relevant projects:

  • ME4508 Seascape natural capital approach (year 2) (CEFAS)
    • Develops and applies a seascape‑scale natural capital framework to integrate ecological assets, ecosystem services and valuation for broad marine areas. Demonstrates how seascape characterisation can support strategic marine management.
  • ME4509 Place based assessment for marine recovery (year 1) (Natural England)
    • Establishes methods for applying the full natural capital workflow in specific locations to understand assets, pressures and service delivery. Provides initial evidence to support place‑based recovery planning.
  • ME4512 Place based assessment for marine recovery (year 2)(Natural England)
    • Advances the year 1 work by refining spatial analyses and linking asset condition to ecosystem services more explicitly. Produces applied outputs that inform local marine recovery decisions.
  • ME4513 Marine natural capital approach to achieving GES (year 2) (JNCC)
    • Applies natural capital principles to understand how ecosystem services contribute to Good Environmental Status. Provides evidence pathways connecting assets, condition and services to MSFD descriptors.
  • ME4515 Natural capital approaches at the land sea interface (year 2) (Environment Agency)
    • Develops tools to assess how coastal and marine assets interact across the land sea boundary and how these influence ecosystem service flows. Supports integrated management across coastal systems.
  • ME4516 Offshore marine monitoring (year 2) (JNCC)
    • Explores how offshore monitoring data can be aligned with natural capital workflows to assess condition and service delivery in deeper waters. Demonstrates opportunities to incorporate NC metrics into monitoring design.
  • ME4519 Inshore evidence and natural capital approaches (year 2) (Natural England)
    • Improves the evidence base for inshore assets and applies natural capital methods to understand how these support services important to coastal communities. Strengthens links between local data and valuation.
  • ME4523 Embedding natural capital in marine plan development. (MMO)
    • Integrates natural capital assessments into the marine planning process to support more transparent decision making. Provides practical approaches for embedding assets, services and values in plan evidence.
  • ME4526 Decision making for a thriving marine environment (years 1 to 3) (MMO)
    • Develops tools and approaches to bring natural capital evidence into strategic decision making. Produces multi‑year outputs that support policy evaluation, scenario testing and prioritisation.
  • ME4527 Achieving GES through natural capital (year 3) (JNCC)
    • Completes a multi‑year programme demonstrating how natural capital workflows support GES assessments. Provides consolidated methods, case studies and evidence to inform MSFD delivery.
  • ME4529 Marine natural capital data access (year 3) (Marine Biological Association of the UK & Plymouth Marine Laboratory)
    • Improves access to natural capital datasets and supports the development of interoperable data products. Provides tools, documentation and workflows that underpin wider adoption of NC assessments.
  • ME4531 Natural capital approach for a Fisheries Management Plan (year 3) (MMO)
    • Applies the natural capital framework to a Fisheries Management Plan to link ecological condition, stock dynamics and service delivery. Demonstrates how NC evidence can support sustainable fisheries management.
  • ME4532 Land-sea interface application and tools (year 3) (Environment Agency)
    • Delivers tools and databases to support coastal restoration and tested the application of the source-to-sea approach.
  • ME4533 Land-sea interface metrics and indicators (year 3) (Environment Agency)
    • Develops metrics to quantify ecosystem services across the land sea interface and assess how terrestrial and marine systems interact. Supports integrated reporting and policy alignment.
  • ME4534 Land-sea interface evidence gathering (year 3)(Environment Agency) 
    • Strengthens the evidence base for coastal and transitional assets that underpin ecosystem services. Provides data and analysis necessary for developing cross‑boundary natural capital assessments.
  • ME4536 A seascape natural capital approach for sustainable management (year 3) (CEFAS)
    • Builds, develops and implements natural capital-based evidence and products.

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