Environmental Management Accounting by Christian Herzig Tobias Viere Stefan Schaltegger & Roger L. Burritt

Author:Christian Herzig, Tobias Viere, Stefan Schaltegger & Roger L. Burritt
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Routledge

EMA Application

Physical EMA, required by regulation, provides the foundation for reporting and use of accounting information at Well-Ever. Information about the initial environmental impact assessment and material and energy flows is considered next.

Environmental Impact Assessment

An environmental impact assessment involves the prediction and evaluation of impacts on the biophysical and human environment that are likely to occur during construction, commission, operation, and abandonment of operations (DENR 2007). The review and evaluation of environment-related concerns, investigated in the following sub-section, focusses on determining the impacts caused by the operation of the existing Well-Ever electroplating shop. Although information about socio-economic and socio-political spheres of influence is part of the overall assessment, only impacts on the natural environment impacts are addressed here.

Integration of environmental concerns in the planning and management decision-making process of the company also requires designing appropriate preventative, mitigating, and enhancing measures. Accordingly, successive sub-sections introduce the environmental management and environmental monitoring plans which illustrate the managerial and control consequences of an environmental impact assessment, and then describe the links between accounting measures and management plans to identify, evaluate, and monitor environmental impacts and the use of the information gathered for external reporting and environmental compliance certification.

Identification, Prediction, and Evaluation of Environmental Impacts

The initial ex-ante analysis of environmental impacts was undertaken by evaluating the business’s operations against the known list of potential impacts identified by sources relevant for this type of project (Rau and Wooten 1980; World Bank 1991; ADB 1993). Assessment results presented are partly based on past knowledge about corporate impacts on the natural environment (measured in physical terms) caused by the operation of the electroplating shop. Ex-post information is used to predict expected impacts. The ex-post impacts embodied in current operations at Well-Ever (Figure 9.1: Box 11) provide a better understanding of long-term environmental impacts (Figure 9.1: Box 15). The aim of environmental impact assessment is to assess the effectiveness of the business by considering environmental improvements of new or improved technology and production processes. The following impacts were identified and assessed at Well-Ever: environmental hazards, water demand, wastewater generation, waste, and air emissions.

Environmental Hazards

In operating its electroplating unit, chemicals are used that are hazardous. The hazardous chemicals are mixed with water during electroplating and this contaminated wastewater needs to be captured and treated, rather than expelled into nearby waterways or sewerage. The probability of an impact is considered minimal as Well-Ever has its own wastewater treatment facility to treat its effluents. Another potential impact can be caused by materials that are being used in the operation and maintenance of the plant, for instance petrochemical products such as lubricants, and oils or grease. The waste coming from the use of these hazardous materials needs to be carefully stored for hauling and treatment by an Environmental Management Bureau-certified environmental service provider to avoid water and soil pollution. In addition, the company needs to register as a hazardous waste generator with the Environmental Management Bureau.

Water Demand

The water requirement of the plant is estimated to be about 90 m³ per month (i.e. 3.

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