Marine Ecological Asset Accounting in China: A Review and an Integrated Framework and Policy Pathways for Sustainable Development

Marine ecological assets (MEAs) comprise habitats, living resources, and ecosystem services and are globally fundamental to biodiversity conservation, climate regulation, and sustainable development. However, the establishment of systematic frameworks for MEA definition, classification, and valuation faces considerable conceptual and methodological challenges, particularly in rapidly industrializing nations with urgent marine conservation priorities. We reviewed the theoretical evolution, methodological development, and practical implementation of MEA accounting in China and propose an integrated framework that bridges conceptual gaps and supports evidence-based policy for sustainable marine governance. Our comprehensive analysis covers domestic and international literature, policy documents, technical standards, and case studies. We developed a definition that incorporates ownership attributes and dynamic management elements, and constructed a three-in-one classification system that integrates resource characteristics, ecological functions, and governance needs from existing international frameworks adapted to the governance context in China. We identified seven multidimensional MEA attributes and systematically evaluated mainstream valuation methods (market-based, alternative market, and hypothetical market approaches) across different marine ecosystem types (e.g., estuaries, coral reefs, mangrove forests). The review provides a coherent theoretical foundation for advancing MEA accounting in China and offers practical pathways for integrating accounting outcomes into policy mechanisms such as ecological compensation, blue carbon trading, and marine spatial planning. Our framework contributes to the operationalization of the philosophy that “lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets” in marine governance and may provide preliminary insights for other nations developing MEA capital accounts to achieve sustainable development goals, although cross-national comparative validation is necessary to assess applicability beyond the Chinese context.