Environmental Sustainability

Transcription

1 1 Managing for Environmental Sustainability Background Recent years have witnessed a shift in thinking on corporate governance issues and the concept of corporate accountability and the accountant s role in developing an accounting information system capable of providing reports on triple bottom line (environmental, social and financial) basis in terms of corporate social responsibility. Increasingly business entities are seen to be accountable to a much broader stakeholder community. One impetus for change arose out of the repercussions of the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster in 1989 with the creation of The Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES: link). The main mission of CERES is integrating sustainability into capital markets for the health of the planet and its people. Every company that joins CERES is obliged to produce sustainability or corporate responsibility reports. Other global initiatives in sustainability reporting include The Corporate Register [link], a free directory of environmental reports issued by companies, with a user based rating system and annual awards. The need for corporate responsibility in terms of the environment was again emphasised in the recent oil spill which leached from the Pacific Adventurer and damaged kilometres of pristine beaches on the south east coast of Queensland see attached news clippings add the articles in an attachment. Currently in Australia, sustainability reports are generally non mandatory. However the Australian Government s Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts website states there has been a growth in the uptake of corporate reporting (45% of the world s top 250 countries now publish stand alone reports with environmental information, consistent with the drive for good corporate governance, heightened transparency and sound risk management [link]. Managing the environmental sustainability of a business requires an Environmental Management System (EMS). To develop an EMS, an organisation has to assess its environmental impacts, set targets to reduce these impacts, and plan how to achieve the targets. In addition the organisation has to be aware of the need to be able to assess the costs and benefits of targets put in place to reduce impacts. As such the EMS needs to be closely integrated with an organisation s Environmental Management Accounting Information System (EMAIS). After reading the material on InterfaceFlor, in this assignment you are required to choose an Australian based organisation and look at its operations and explain the key links between its EMS and EMAIS.

2 2 You will need to identify which EMS components set out below are relevant to your organisation and reconcile these as appropriate with key management accounting metrics necessary to monitor and assess relevant environmental and financial performance. The social and ethical dimensions should be considered where appropriate. 1. Environmental Impact Identification Identification and documentation of the actual and potential environmental impacts of an organisation's operations need to be undertaken. This can be achieved through undertaking an environmental audit. 2. Objectives and Targets An environmental audit forms the basis of determining an organisation's environmental objectives and targets. An organisation can find benefits in adopting more stringent longer term objectives to encourage it to improve its performance. To continually improve, targets should be regularly reviewed. 3. Consultation Staff and community consultation should be undertaken before, during and after establishment of an EMS. This is necessary to ensure that all staff are involved in, and committed to the EMS. It can also help to improve public perception of the company, one of the benefits of implementing an EMS. 4. Operational and Emergency Procedures All procedures should be reviewed to ensure they are compatible with the organisation's environmental objectives and targets. Any changes should be included with the documentation 5. Environmental Management Plan This details the methods and procedures which an organisation will use to meet its objectives and targets.

3 Documentation All objectives, targets, policies, responsibilities and procedures should be documented along with information on environmental performance. Documentation is useful for verifying environmental performance to staff, regulators and the community. 7. Responsibilities and Reporting Structure Responsibilities need to be allocated to staff and management to ensure the EMS is implemented effectively. 8. Training Staff should undergo environmental awareness training to familiarise them with their responsibilities for implementing the EMS and with the overall environmental policy and objectives of the organisation. This provides staff with the necessary skills and motivation for the effective implementation of the EMS. 9. Review Audits and Monitoring Compliance Review audits should be undertaken regularly to ensure the EMS is achieving its objectives and to refine operational procedures to meet this goal. In order to ensure regulatory and other requirements are being met, it is often necessary to undertake regular environmental monitoring. 10. Continual Improvement An important component is continual improvement. An EMS comes into its best use when used to review progress towards the targets and objectives set by a company to protect the environment. The procedures set in place to meet these objectives should be constantly examined to see if they can be improved or if more effective systems can be introduced. Source: Department of Environment Heritage, Water and the Arts (DEHW&A) 2007, Environmental Management Systems (EMS), December, Accessed 23/09/2008 [link] Requirements

4 4 Form groups of five students and produce a project plan to allocate responsibility and timelines for completing the various aspects of the assignment. Submit your group s project plan for comment by. (marks will be allocated for this component). Work together to produce a report which addresses the following. The report is to be presented for marking by.. with oral presentations commencing in week tutorials. Provide justification for companies to produce sustainability reports. Produce an overview of your chosen business and the industry in which it operates Explain how each of the key EMS components that you have selected are relevant to your chosen business. Analyse and discuss how the selected EMS components that needs to be managed and how they might be measured in the EMAIS in order to evaluate and improve environmental and financial performance. Conclusion What are the likely costs and benefits of the practical implementation of the system that you propose? Make sure you consider the social and ethical as well as the environmental and financial. Assessment The assignment is to be prepared in groups of 5 to produce an assignment, length and depth and weight depending on year level. An oral presentation can be included. Support for this resource has been provided by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council Ltd, an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. The views expressed in this (report/publication/activity) do not necessarily reflect the views of the Australian Learning and Teaching Council.

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