Environmental auditing: Theory and applications |
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Authors: | Dixon Thompson Melvin J Wilson |
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Institution: | (1) Faculty of Environmental Design, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr. NW, T2N 1N4 Calgary, Alberta, Canada;(2) Coopers and Lybrand, 2400, 255-5th Avenue SW, T2P 3G6 Calgary, Alberta, Canada |
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Abstract: | The environmental audit has become a regular part of corporate environmental management in Canada and is also gaining recognition
in the public sector. A 1991 survey of 75 private sector companies across Canada revealed that 76% (57/75) had established
environmental auditing programs. A similar survey of 19 federal, provincial, and municipal government departments revealed
that 11% (2/19) had established such programs. The information gained from environmental audits can be used to facilitate
and enhance environmental management from the single facility level to the national and international levels. This paper is
divided into two sections: section one examines environmental audits at the facility/company level and discusses environmental
audit characteristics, trends, and driving forces not commonly found in the available literature. Important conclusions are:
that wherever possible, an action plan to correct the identified problems should be an integral part of an audit, and therefore
there should be a close working relationship between auditors, managers, and employees, and that the first audits will generally
be more difficult, time consuming, and expensive than subsequent audits. Section two looks at environmental audits in the
broader context and discusses the relationship between environmental audits and three other environmental information gathering/analysis
tools: environmental impact assessments, state of the environment reports, and new systems of national accounts. The argument
is made that the information collected by environmental audits and environmental impact assessments at the facility/company
level can be used as the bases for regional and national state of the environment reports and new systems of national accounts. |
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Keywords: | Environmental audit Environmental impact assessment State of the environment report National accounts |
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