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Trends in South African corporate environmental reporting: A research note

Trends in South African corporate environmental reporting: A research note The contents of the annual reports of listed mining companies as well as of the Top 100 industrial companies in South Africa were analysed to determine how the disclosure of environmental information has changed over time. Disclosure of general environmental information increased until 1999 and then stabilised at that level. The initial increase in the disclosure of specific environmental information, such as measurable objectives and environmental performance, was followed by a decrease from 1998 onwards. A possible explanation could be that the lack of legal requirements with regard to the reporting of environmental information enables companies to decide what to report and what the extent of the reporting should be. They can therefore elect not to report specific and sometimes sensitive information, because stakeholders could perceive such information to be negative and it could therefore have a negative impact on the corporate image. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Meditari Accountancy Research Emerald Publishing

Trends in South African corporate environmental reporting: A research note

E. Antonites; C.J. de Villiers
Meditari Accountancy Research , Volume 11 (1): 10 – Apr 1, 2003
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References (18)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © 2003 MCB UP Ltd. All rights reserved.
ISSN
1022-2529
DOI
10.1108/10222529200300001
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

The contents of the annual reports of listed mining companies as well as of the Top 100 industrial companies in South Africa were analysed to determine how the disclosure of environmental information has changed over time. Disclosure of general environmental information increased until 1999 and then stabilised at that level. The initial increase in the disclosure of specific environmental information, such as measurable objectives and environmental performance, was followed by a decrease from 1998 onwards. A possible explanation could be that the lack of legal requirements with regard to the reporting of environmental information enables companies to decide what to report and what the extent of the reporting should be. They can therefore elect not to report specific and sometimes sensitive information, because stakeholders could perceive such information to be negative and it could therefore have a negative impact on the corporate image.

Journal

Meditari Accountancy Research – Emerald Publishing

Published: Apr 1, 2003

Keywords: Environmental reporting; Environmental disclosure; Environmental accounting

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