Abstract:Gross Ecosystem Product (GEP) can be defined as the value of products and services provided by ecosystems to human beings. It is significant in considering the value of final goods and services produced by the population of a country or region in a given period. In general, the natural environment, upon which human beings rely for their existence and development, should be viewed within the compound economy-society-nature system. Thus, the value of goods and services provided by ecosystems should be incorporated within economic accounting systems. Recently, there have been a number of attempts to refine social development evaluation using measures such as Gross National Happiness Index and Human Development Index. In addition, many researchers have estimated the value of ecosystem services using approaches such as the market value method, shadow price assessment, alternative engineering method, and opportunity cost approach. However, their studies lack unified accounting indicators and accounting systems that are matched with the framework of national economic statistics. In this paper, an integrated method was proposed for estimating the value of GEP, taking into account ecosystem supplies, ecological cultural values, adjustable land values, and carrying capacities. A detailed emergy analysis was introduced into the assessment of resource supplies, cultural values, and carrying capacities. A numerical model was adopted to estimate adjustable values based on the classification and size of ecological land, as well as the corresponding adjustable value of an individual type of ecological land. Moreover, the results of gross national and regional ecosystem production were compared with the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The results indicate that this method could offer theoretical and technical insights in assessing natural resource assets and liabilities for business accounting and integrated ecosystem management purposes. It is also of great significance for the scientific evaluation and rational utilization of natural resources and in promoting the creation of an ecologically sustainable civilization. Based on the main functions of ecosystem services, ecological land can be classified into 4 types, namely wetland, forest, grassland, and other ecological land, as well as 19 sub-types. Among these types, wetland, forest, and grassland should be regarded as fundamental ecological land. The results indicated that in 2008, the area of ecological land in China was 7.6395 million km2, accounting for about 80 percent of the entire land area, and the extent of other ecological land was approximately 5.308 million km2. Meanwhile, the total value of land ecological supplies, ecological cultural values, and ecological carrying capacity in 2008 was 18.16 trillion dollars in China. The above ecosystem services accounted for 18.8, 8.4, and 72.8 percent respectively of the total value. The value of land ecology adjusting measured by basic ecological land was 835.12 billion dollars. The total value of GEP in China was about 19 trillion dollars in 2008. Compared with the GDP for that year, namely, 4.71 trillion dollars, GEP was four times as much as GDP. GEP per capita was about 14500 dollars. The values of GEP in different provinces of China were found to vary. The values of GEP in Guangdong, Shandong, and Henan provinces were bigger than those in other provinces, while the value of GEP in Tibet was the lowest. However, the values of per capita GEP in Tibet and Inner Mongolia were the top two among all of the provinces. In contrast, the per capita value in Gansu province was the lowest.