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Accounting for Social and Environmental Challenges: a Theoretical Perspective Amos O

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Accounting for Social and Environmental Challenges: a Theoretical Perspective Amos O DOI: 10.21276/sjbms.2016.1.3.10 Saudi Journal of Business and Management Studies ISSN 2415-6663 (Print) Scholars Middle East Publishers ISSN 2415-6671 (Online) Dubai, United Arab Emirates Website: http://scholarsmepub.com/ Accounting for Social and Environmental Challenges: A Theoretical Perspective Amos O. Arowoshegbe1, Uniamikogbo Emmanuel2 1Lecturer, Department of Accounting, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Edo State, Nigeria 2Lecturer, Department of Accounting, Rhema University, Aba, Abia State, Nigeria *Corresponding Author: Amos O. Arowoshegbe Email: [email protected] Abstract: Globally, environmental problems have negatively impacted every area of human endeavours. Global increase in economic activities and the growing challenges generated by environmental activities have made the traditional accounting system ill-equipped to provide adequate information about the environmental activities of organizations. Conventional approaches of cost accounting have become inadequate because they have ignored important environmental costs and activities impacting consequences on the environment. Corporate neglect and avoidance of environmental costing have left a gap of financial incompleteness and absence of fair view of financial information reporting to users of financial statements and environmental regulatory agencies. The study seeks to provide a theoretical overview of accounting for social and environmental challenges and pointed out the superiority of Environmental Accounting over the Traditional Accounting in this wise, Our review showed that environmental accounting operating expenditures are not charged independently of other expenditures. There is also, absence of costing system for tracking of externality costs. Environmental accounting disclosure does not however, take the same pattern among listed companies globally. Considering the current limited exposure of many organizations to environmental accounting methodology, this study proffers an insight into new bases and design for environmental accounting. This paper posits that a lot can be done to douse environmental and social challenges and pacify those directly affected by applying palliative and preventive remedies using environmental accounting aspects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies as a tool. Keywords: Environmental Accounting, Social Accounting, Environmental Costs, Theoretical Perspective, Challenges INTRODUCTION organizations that it has engendered disclosures of Due to global increase in economic activities information which totally exclude environmental issues. and the growing challenges generated by environmental Where reported, are grossly inadequate. Environmental activities, the traditional accounting system is ill- disclosures have become critically important to an equipped to provide adequate information about the informed public and stakeholders. Also, pertinent is the environmental activities of organizations. Conventional difficulty of evaluating environmental remediation for approaches of cost accounting have become inadequate environmental degradation where environmental costs since conventional accounting practices have do exist. The assessment of environmental impacts on ignored important environmental costs and activities company‟s financial situation cannot be achieved using impacting consequences on the environment. Corporate the traditional accounting system. These and several neglect and avoidance of environmental costing leave other deficiencies associated with the traditional gap in financial information reporting. There is no accounting system brought relevance to environmental completeness and correctness of fair view to users of accounting. financial information, such as shareholders, environmental regulatory agencies, environmentalists While social responsibility accounting is and potential financial investors. If vital environmental directly concerned with articulating or expressing the issues and activities are not disclosed, financial social and environmental impacts of organizations, statement cannot be said to reveal state of a „true and environmental accounting according to Crowther [1] is fair view of affairs‟. Also, the challenge of cost and basically a subset of social responsibility accounting valuation for damage, depletion and degradation of the which focuses on the cost structure and environmental environment externalities is a critical problem which performance of a company. continues to demand attention. This study focuses on the Nigeria situation Since current requirement for reporting on where some companies especially those in the environmental issues is voluntary, it is observed petroleum sector are known for causing heavy from most financial statements of corporate degradation on the environment. For emphasis, the 143 Arowoshegbe AO et al.; Saudi J. Bus. Manag. Stud.; Vol-1, Iss-3(Aug-Oct, 2016):143-148 problem is that the Nigerian business environment has Sometimes they have been totally left out of financial yet to recognize and design environmental accounting reporting because they constitute externality social for environmental information and issues of raw costs which did not form part of bottom-line materials, energy consumption and use of natural financial reporting. Adverse effect on the society resources which have systematically depleted the known as environmental social costs, or externality environment. Based on this, the study seeks to examine costs is a critical issue for consideration. This is the superiority of environmental accounting to the considered an issue of responsibility for environmental traditional accounting system. This is the knowledge accountability. gap the study seeks to fill. What are Environmental Costs? What is Environmental Accounting? There is no single accepted definition of Environmental accounting is an innovative environmental costs such that different organizations sustainability initiative that has been defined by Steele employ different definitions. To minimize possible and Powell, [2] as that aspect of accounting which has uncertainty, an organization using the term to do with the identification, allocation and analysis, of environmental cost should provide a definition that material streams and their related money flows by using clearly defines the scope of costs included. Any environmental accounting systems to provide insight in organization aspiring to achieve goals associated with environmental impacts and associated financial effects. reducing environmental expenses, increasing revenues According to the United State Environmental Protection and improving environmental performance, must Agency [3], “an important function of environmental clearly define how it intends to identify, measure and accounting is to bring environmental cost to the report its environmental costs in a consistent and attention of corporate stakeholders who may be able systematic manner [5]. At this stage it is not essential and motivated to identify ways of reducing or avoiding that a single definition of environmental costs be those costs while at the same time improving developed. What is important is that environmental environmental quality.” Environmental or green costs are not ignored. accounting involves measuring the environmental performance of an organization, including government According to United States Environmental bodies and manufacturers in economic terms. It is a Protection Agency, [3] environmental costs are those type of cost benefit analysis system, which relates to the costs that have a direct financial impact on a company monetary assessment of environmental costs associated (internal costs); and costs to individuals, society and the with the development and operational activities and the environment for which the company is not accountable economic benefits of good environmental management (external costs). Environmental costs have traditionally [4]. According to the US EPA [3], Green Accounting or been thought of as being the end-of-pipe costs, such as Environmental Accounting is defined as: „Identifying the costs associated with cleaning up sites after and measuring the costs of environmental materials and production, or waste-water treatment costs. activities and using this information for environmental Environmental management policies that focus on these management decisions. This definition was developed end-of-pipe costs and technologies can generate by international consensus of the group members, positive returns [6]. For a minority of organizations, the representing 30 nations. According to them, environmental costs might also include the Environmental accounting involves the identification, environmental and social impacts caused to other collection, analysis and the use of two types of entities by the organization‟s operations. These information for decision-making: externalities are typically referred to as societal costs 1. Physical information on the use, flow of i.e. costs imposed on individuals, society and the energy, water and materials (including wastes) environment for which the organization is not directly and held accountable [7]. Most organizations restrict their 2. Monetary information on environment-related attention to private costs, which are costs that the entity costs, earnings and savings. is held accountable and which in turn impact the organization‟s financial bottom line. In the real world, environmental accounting ranges from a simple adjustment of existing accounting The relevance of environmental
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