Environmental financial accounting deals with accounting for and reporting on environmental transactions and events that affect, or are likely to affect, the financial position of an enterprise.
One of the challenges is to ensure that:
- environmental costs and liabilities are accounted for by following relevant accounting standards or, in their absence, generally accepted accounting practices; and
- the meaningful disclosure of the environmental performance of an enterprise is provided.
A further challenge is to ensure that appropriate management accounting procedures are, where necessary, developed and used. For instance, to cost out pollution controls; to compare alternative materials that can be used in manufacturing; and to investigate recycling alternatives.
The objective of this manual is to inform and give guidance on environmental accounting issues, and identify best practices that may be considered by national standard setters in the development of their own accounting standards, rules or regulations.
