Millennium Assessment systems with the lowest net primary productivity and lowest GDP tended to have the highest population growth rates between 1990 and 2000. Urban, inland water, and marine systems are not included due to the somewhat arbitrary nature of determining net primary productivity of the system (urban) or population growth and GDP (freshwater and marine) for them.

The graph shows environmental trends in Nordic countries (II). The graph demonstrates negative and positive environmental developments in areas such as marine water and discharges of Nitrogen, fresh water resources, and inland water.

Inland water systems are permanent water bodies inland from the coastal zone and areas whose properties and use are dominated by the permanent, seasonal, or intermittent occurrence of flooded conditions. Inland waters include rivers, lakes, floodplains, reservoirs, wetlands, and inland saline systems.