How to choose the right environmental accounting software

✍ Scribed by Sarah D. Stanwick; Peter A. Stanwick

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 618 KB
• Volume: 9
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1044-8136
• DOI: 10.1002/jcaf.3970090407

✦ Synopsis

Complyingwith environmental regulations will continue to bea major concern as we approach the 21st century. Most companies try to use their existingsoftware to track environmental costs. But with the cost of environmental penalties rising-, that may be a mistake. The authors show how to select more specialized software that helps you improve compliance-and lowers the risk of expensive penalties.

s businesses approach the 21st century, two things are certain. First, A environmental regulations and compliance with these regulations will continue to be a major concern across industries. As the general public continues to demand clean air and water, and corporate responsibility for environmental problems, environmental issues will continue to be part of all companies' operating procedures. Second, the selection process for environmental-based software will become more difficult as new computer programs are introduced. When examining environmental accounting and compliance software, many companies try to use their existing software to track environmental costs through the system. However, in reality, firms also should look for specialized software packages to help improve compliance, as the penalties for noncompliance continue to escalate. The volume of data that must be tracked for compliance purposes has proven difficult for companies to accomplish manually. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has identified that environmental spending is approaching 2 percent of the nation's Gross National Product.

The purpose of this article is to address software selection for environmental accounting and compliance issues. We will provide useful tips for choosing the best software and discuss examples of software currently available for several different environmental areas.

WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING?

Until recently, environmental accounting issues had not been addressed in detail in the accounting literature. Practicing accountants who came in contact with environmental issues were forced to use FAS 5, Accountingfor Contingencies,