An examination of the relevance of ISO 14000 environmental standards: A survey of U.S. corporations

Environmental outlays are significantly increasing and will continue to increase as the world becomes more environmentally conscious and countries issue more extensive environmental laws and regulations. This chapter discusses the new global environmental initiatives (ISO 14000 environmental standards) and presents the results of a survey of a sample of Chief Financial Officers and Corporate Environmental Officers that provided information on environmental matters including corporate environmental costs, the use and importance of environmental audits, and the adoption of ISO 14000 environmental standards and their perceived benefits. The results of this study may provide insight to business, academia, government regulatory agencies, and accounting standard setters regarding environmental matters. The concepts and issues discussed herein may provide guidance to other countries that are considering addressing the challenges and opportunities of their own environmental regulations, laws, accounting standards, and environmental auditing.