ABSTRACT

This chapter shows that the full potential of corporate Environmental performance indicators (EPl) is realised only when they serve decision-makers both inside and outside company walls. It proposes that the Environmental Protection Agency has announced its intention to propose an expansion of Technology Research Institute data elements to include information on chemical use, which would begin to address another of the key categories of EPI. The chapter presents International Organization for Standardization 14031, the guidance on environmental performance evaluation, in draft form, acknowledges the importance of measuring inputs and outputs, much like the EPls. It focuses on the managerial and public attention on a firm's basic material and energy inputs and outputs as products and wastes. With the gradual adoption of standard EPls, comparability-across firms, sectors and countries-will permeate internal management systems and external reporting. Some communities and environ-mentalists approach EPls from the standpoint of their 'right to know', emphasising public disclosure at the facility level.