Green economy
How much does the public sector pay in environmental transfers? And what are the revenues from environmental taxes? The statements from the green national accounts cover the public sector’s environmental expenditures and revenues, companies’ environmental protection expenditures, companies’ production of environmental goods and services, as well as environmental taxes and environmental transfers.
Explainer on…
Prices or price level that applies to goods and services in the current period. The opposite of current prices is fixed prices.
Selected statistics on Green economy
Environmental taxes
The source material for the statistics is the public finances, as they are stored, after national accounts coding, in the database DIOR (Database for Integrated Public Accounts). Using selected expenses and revenue from DIOR, tables are compiled to cover the three main subject areas of these statistics (see 2.1). For a more detailed description of DIOR, see the statistical documentation for accounts for general government.
Environmental goods and services

There are overall two sources for the statistics:
- A. A survey by questionnaire, where enterprises are asked about turnover in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 from EGSS broken down by environmental purposes. About 1.700 units were selected in 2023 as a sample covering a population of about 6.100 business units in the respective types of industry. The selection is by stratified methods.
The stratification is by type of industry and by number of employees (10-19, 20-49 and 50+). In the last group the selection is 100 per cent of population. Within manufacturing a pre-selection is carried out according to a list of environmental goods type of goods (CN8). Within advisory service engineer firms are prioritized. In 2013 Enterprises in Nace_rev2 38 and 39 was selected 100 per cent. from 2015 results for this sector is estimated from other statistics
- B. Existing data from Statistics Denmark or other agencies, which could be used, either directly or as source for estimation.
Both sources are linked to statistical data on employment, value added and export.
The survey covers the following types of industry: 13, 14, 16, 17, 18 (from 2015), 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 (from 2021), 33, 41+42+43 (only 2013, 2015 and 2021) , 71, 74
Results covering the units with less than 10 employees has been estimated by industry, using data from units with 10-19 employees.
Existing data is used for the following industries: 01, 02, 35, 37, 38+39 (from 2015),41+42+42 (2017-2020, 2023), and 72
Other statistical sources: - Account statistics for agriculture - Forestry statistics - Account statistics, non-agricultural industries - Enterprise statistics - Employment statistics - External trade statistics - National account statistics - Sale and purchase, enterprises - Business register - Construction statistics
Environmental transfers
The source material for the statistics is the public finances, as they are stored, after national accounts coding, in the database DIOR (Database for Integrated Public Accounts). Using selected expenses and revenue from DIOR, tables are compiled to cover the three main subject areas of these statistics (see 2.1). For a more detailed description of DIOR, see the statistical documentation for accounts for general government.
Environmental protection
The source material for the statistics is the public finances, as they are stored, after national accounts coding, in the database DIOR (Database for Integrated Public Accounts). Using selected expenses and revenue from DIOR, tables are compiled to cover the three main subject areas of these statistics (see 2.1). For a more detailed description of DIOR, see the statistical documentation for accounts for general government.
On the statistics – documentation, sources and method
See the documentation of statistics to learn more:
The statistics on environmental goods and services shows economy and employment related to market-based business activities within environmental protection and resource saving areas. The statistics contribute to the overall picture of what happens in the environmental field and is a part of the environmental accounts. First results covers 2012.
In general the statistics illustrate the total direct environmental protection expenditures in the covered types of industry. Distinction is made between current expenditures and investments. Current expenditures includes as well internal costs in the enterprises as purchase of services on environmental protection. Results can be further displayed on spending according to environmental purposes: Protection of ambient air and climate, Wastewater management, Waste management, Heat/energy saving and management and Other environmental protection activities
The statistics Public Expenditure and Revenue on the Environment are part of the green national accounts. The statistics establishes a link between public expenditure and revenue and public environmental protection activities. The statistics are used, inter alia, in relation to political decisions in the environmental field, environmental economic analyses and international comparisons of the various EU countries' environmental efforts. The statics date back to 1995.
The statistics concerning water and waste water estimates the abstraction and use of water as well as discharge of waste water distributed on municipalities.
The water account document abstraction of water, use in households and industry groups (as used in the Danish National Accounts) as well as the discharge of waste water via waste water treatment plants to the aquatic environment. The water accounts are based on water and waste water statistics as well as micro-data from the Jupiter database managed by GEUS (Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland) and reports on point sources from the Danish Environmental Protection Agency.
The economic water account document the income in water supply and waste water treatment plants from households and industry groups. The account is based price information from water supply and waste water companies that are member of DANVA, information on individual companies, population, households as well as the physical water account.