The Minister for Environment and Energy can lay down rules on the duty of listed com-
panies periodically to prepare green accounts. The statement of accounts shall indicate
the significant consumption of energy, water and raw material and the type and quantity
of pollutants... forming part of the production process, which are discharged from the
enterprise to air, water and soil or form part of products and waste.In December 1995, the Ministry for Environment and Energy issued statutory
order No. 975 which provided detail of the specific information to be provided.
The Danish government in 1999 undertook a review of the effectiveness of the leg-
islation, which included the analysis of 550 green accounts, interviews with managers
responsible for green accounts, people with a background or interest in green accounts,
the EPA, neighbors of polluting enterprises, and consumers.^3 Regarding the environ-
mental reporting law generally, the review concluded positively. Of most interest, the
review found that approximately “50% of the firms who undertook environmental re-
porting believed that they had achieved financial benefits which arose from the produc-
ing of the accounts which compensated for the costs involved.”^4 At the same time it was
noted that the distribution of costs and benefits did, however, result in “winners and los-
ers” and it was concluded that evidence from the review of the Danish law “points to-
wards this form of environmental accounting as having significant benefits.”^5
(iv) Netherlands. In 1997, the Environmental Management Act was extended to in-
corporate environmental reporting. The environmental reporting decree in the Nether-
lands has required that companies from 1999 produce two sets of environmental ac-
counts: one for the authorities and another for the general public. The Act (through
sections 12.1 to 12.10) sets out that companies licensed by the province and which
have a substantial environmental impact can be required to produce each year an en-
vironmental report for the authorities (government report) or an environmental report
for the general public (public report). While the report to the authorities is specifically
targeted to meet regulators’ needs, the public report is intended for all stakeholders.
The specific categories on which disclosure is required include:
- The nature of the establishment and the activities and processes in the estab-
lishment - The adverse effects on the environment caused by the establishment including a
summary of relevant quantitative data - The technical, organizational, and administrative measures taken by the facili-
ties installed in respect of the establishment in order to protect the environment - Information on the main changes that have taken place in the reporting year in
relation to the previous reporting year - Developments that may reasonably be expected in the next reporting year
(v) Norway. The Norwegian Law of Accounts (introduced as an extension to the
Norwegian Accounting Act in 1998) requires the disclosure of environmental infor-
mation within the Directors’ Report, if a firm has a significant environmental impact.^6
23 • 4 CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL REPORTING(^3) Bebbington 1999.
(^4) Id, p. 4.
(^5) Id.
(^6) Kolk, 1999.