Environmental costs at a Canadian paper mill: a case study of Environmental Management Accounting (EMA)

An Environmental Management Accounting (EMA) framework is applied to the 2000 year-end financial report for the Mackenzie Paper Division paper mill owned and operated by Abitibi-Consolidated Inc. of Montreal, Quebec. A conventional reading of the obvious environmental costs from this financial report is Cdn$2,196,838. This figure is derived from an analysis of effluent treatment costs and other line item environmental costs. There is no “environmental account” category that breaks out either costs or the mass balance of inputs and outputs. For the most part, environmental costs are rolled up into overhead accounts such as administration, infrastructure and materials accounts.Application of the EMA framework is based on assigning environmental costs to one of four categories for which a tentative breakdown is as follows: (1) waste and emission treatment costs ($3,348,902); (2) prevention and environmental management costs ($270,109); (3) material purchase value of non-product output costs ($946,799); and (4) processing costs of non-product output ($2 92,943). There is also a category called Environmental Revenues, of which none were reported. Conservative estimates thus place the total environmental costs at $4,858,753.What is significant about this result is that the environmental costs under EMA are at least twice as much as would normally be reported. This supports the view that environmental costs are much higher than generally considered and makes it clear that many important environmental costs as well as benefits are “hidden” in other accounts. More studies of a similar design are required to confirm the validity of the EMA methodology reported here.     

Environmental management accounting (EMA) as the next step in the evolution of management accounting

Why should organizations and accountants care about environmental issues? Environmental performance and disclosure pressures from the supply chain, finance providers, regulatory agencies, and other stakeholders result in ever-increasing environment-related costs for organizations, but there is also an increasing recognition of the potential monetary benefits of improved environmental performance. There is also growing consensus that traditional accounting practices do not adequately provide the information required for environmental management and the strategic decisions related to it.Environmental Management Accounting (EMA) has been promoted by the Working Group on EMA of the United Nations Division for Sustainable Development UN DSD EMA WG and the publications commissioned by it [UNDESA/DSD, 2001. United Nations Division for Sustainable Development. Environmental Management Accounting, Procedures and Principles. United Nations Publications, New York/Geneva, http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/sdissues/technology/estema1.htm; UNDESA/DSD, 2002. United Nations Division for Sustainable Development. Environmental Management Accounting: Policies and Linkages. United Nations Publications, New York/Geneva, http://www.un.org/esa/sustdev/sdissues/technology/estema1.htm]. Recently, IFAC has published a guidance document on EMA [International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), 2005. International Guidance Document of EMA. IFAC, New York, http://www.ifac.org] that will further promote its application among accountants.This special issue of the Journal of Cleaner Production on EMA focuses on this methodological background as well as upon experiences from case studies from Australia, Austria, Argentina, Canada, Japan and Lithuania.     

Opportunities and constraints for Product-oriented Environmental Management Systems (P-EMS)

Product-oriented Environmental Management Systems (P-EMS) are a logical extension of current, often primarily process- of facility-oriented Environmental Management Systems. The Dutch government promotes P-EMS as part of its product-oriented environmental policies. The idea of P-EMS is to enable producers to make environmentally responsible decisions on product development and product strategies, in collaboration with suppliers and customers. This paper summarises example P-EMS projects in The Netherlands for two segments of industry, namely retail and manufacturing industry. Moreover two other initiatives will be covered that deal with the development of tools to facilitate P-EMS in two other industry sectors (food processing and building). Success factors that emerge from these initial experiences are: focus on partners that have a strong incentive to act, application of screening Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) or user-shells for LCA, and focus on improvements that can be implemented on the short term.     

环境会计探析

环境会计是人们对经济发展与环境资源关系认识深的产物。它在重新确定有关环境的，成本，产值的基础上，以自然资源的耗费和补偿为中心，通过有效的价值管理，达到消除外部不经济，协调经济和环境的目的，可以借鉴发达国家和国际组织的有益探讨，逐步建立我国的环境会计理论和实务体系。     

Environmental relevance and use of energy indicators in environmental management and research

Energy use as a single indicator or in a set of few indicators is often used in applied research in the building, transportation and energy sectors. However, the environmental relevance of energy indicators is seldom questioned. The relation between environmental relevance and energy indicators might seem obvious. Nevertheless, how this is obvious has not been thoroughly discussed. The aim of this paper is to investigate the environmental relevance of the energy indicator and discuss implications for its use. The approach is to express environmental pressure in different environmental impact categories and determine the contribution to these from energy use. Because not all impact categories are closely linked to energy indicators, the aim and context in which it is used must be apparent.     

平顶山市生态环境评价系统的研究

生态环境评价系统是平顶山环境管理信息系统(PDSEMIS)的一个子系统,该系统包括土地开发度评价与生态适宜度评价,本文着重介绍评价功能块建立的原理以及该系统在环境规划中的应用。      

常州市环境管理信息系统的总体设计

本文应用现代管理学原理分析了地方环境管理实体系统的职能、内在联系及系统运行中存在的问题。在此基础上开发了常州市环境管理信息系统(CZEMIS),建立了环境质量管理,污染源管理,环境预测和规划,以及环境图形管理四个平行子系统。      

实验室信息管理系统(LIMS)在环境监测系统的应用探讨

简要介绍了实验室信息管理系统(LIMS)的功用与发展基础,重点提出了环境监测部门引入LIMS所应关注的内容以及监测站LIMS系统应该实现的功能,展望了环境监测部门成功运用LIMS系统后为监测站行政、业务、质量、数据等等管理将带来的巨大变化.     

浅谈油库火灾爆炸事故的风险管理

以某原油库为例,较为系统地介绍油库火灾爆炸事故的风险防范措施,并采用美国道化学公司的火灾爆炸危险指数法确定所采取的风险防范措施在降低火灾爆炸事故危险性的作用,同时举例说明应急预案的主要内容,为其他油库项目的风险管理提供一定的参考,具有一定的实际应用价值。     

吉林市环境管理信息系统的系统实施研究

本文介绍了吉林市环境管理信息系统(JLMEMIS)中系统实施的程序设计方法、特点,系统保护方法、编程技巧、程序调试及测试方法。      

吉林市环境管理信息系统的系统设计研究

本文论述了吉林市环境管理信息系统(JLMEMIS)的系统设计指导思想,运用结构化系统设计的方法进行系统设计。重点介绍了系统功能模块分解,系统流程图、系统输入输出设计、数据库结构设计及应用模型的选择。      

环境管理经济手段有效性分析

环境管理经济手段能否充分有效地发挥效果对于环境保护的有效开展具有重要的作用。通过论述环境管理经济手段的特点和实际应用的状况,分析了经济手段在环境保护中发挥的作用和存在的问题,提出了加强经济手段有效性的相应对策措施。     

全氟和多氟烷基类化合物(PFASs)的环境转化与分类管控

全氟和多氟烷基类化合物(per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, PFASs)具有环境持久性、生物累积性和生物毒性(PBT),其暴露所引发的环境与健康风险已在世界范围内引起关注. 近期,有学者提议将PFASs作为一类高持久性物质进行全面管控,并淘汰PFASs的所有非必要用途. 鉴于PFASs在工业领域的不可或缺性,加快PFASs的淘汰进程势必会对社会和经济产生较大影响. 因此,淘汰PFASs需要一个漫长的过渡期. 在这期间,亟需开展积极有效的应对措施,最大程度地将PFASs暴露对生态环境乃至人体健康产生的潜在危害降到最低. 笔者认为加强PFASs的降解转化研究是目前较为有效且可行的策略之一,这将有助于理解PFASs的PBT特性,进而推动PFASs的分类管理. 笔者提出可在“疑似靶向/非靶向高分辨率质谱技术开发”“PFASs的传递、积累、代谢和消除行为”和“PFASs转化产物与不良健康影响之间关系的系统毒理学网络”等方面开展PFASs的降解转化研究. 通过高效筛查识别PFASs的分子转化机制,解析转化产物的PBT性质,进而对PFASs进行合理归类划分,并为制定PFASs及替代品的分类管控决策提供依据.      

上海市重点污染企业（国家级）环境保护管理的探讨

以列入国家环保局的全国３０００家重点污染企业名单中，上海１００家重点污染企业为对象，提出在社会主义市场经济下，企业是防治污染的主体，要规范企业自身环境管理行为和环保部门要依法行政，强化监督管理职能的工作内容，据此设想建立重点污染企业专职管理网络的组织结构和社会环境管理的网络框架，并对目前加强重点污染企业环境管理提出７点建议。     

环境价值核算对环境影响评价有效性的影响

阐述环境影响评价有效性概念和环境价值概念,并提出环境价值影响评价,将环境价值核算纳入环境影响评价体系中,是中国环境影响评价有效性的特殊问题。     

环境会计在环保项目财务分析中的应用

环境会计是研究经济发展与环境资源之间的关系,计量、记录环境污染、环境防治、开发、利用的成本费用,并对企业经营过程中对社会环境的维护和开发形成的效益进行合理计量与报告,综合评估环境绩效及环境活动对企业财务成果影响的一门新兴会计学科,它是进行环境保护经济评估的理论基础.以一钢铁公司的污水处理项目为实例,介绍了环境会计在环保项目财务分析中应用的基本方法,尤其是包括常规成本、负债性成本和环境成本在内的生命周期成本的计算方法,可确定环保项目的成本与收益,为同类型项目的财务评价提供参考.运用环境会计的理论和实践,进行环保项目财务分析,目的明确,方法简便可行,操作性强,对于环保项目财务评价及投资决策,具有较高的实用价值.     

生命周期环境成本核算方法研究

生命周期环境成本以成本企业作为进行生态产品设计的重要手段,但生命周期环境成本至今没有国际标准方法。本文对环境成本的分类、研究主体和研究动因进行了分析。对两种不同类型的生命周期环境成本核算方法进行了比较,认为基于环境影响评价结果的生命周期环境成本核算方法在国内具有较好的应用前景。     

浅谈环境统计工作与环境监测工作的关系

铁岭市环境统计工作安排到环境监测站的几年内,环境污染源监测及水、气、固体废物的环境质量监测数据被环境统计核算采纳,环境监测与环境统计工作二者相辅相成、相互促进,提高了环境监测为环境管理工作服务的质量.     

关于建立我国环境会计的思考

随着我国社会主义市场建设步伐的加快以及参与国际化分工的深入，建立环境会计显得越来越为迫切。探讨了构建我国环境会计的客观必要性及具体设想。