Environmental Performance Indicators:
Key Features Of Some Recent Proposals
Author(s)
R. Langford
Abstract
This paper identifies some key features of thinking by the United Nations
Conference on Trade and Development, \“A Manual for Preparers and Users of
Eco-efficiency Indicators” (2004). The UN approach is compared with that of the
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) in the third generation of its Sustainability
Reporting Guidelines (G3) issued in October 2006 and that set out in
\“Environmental Key Performance Indicators – Reporting Guidelines for UK
Business” (2006). Reference is also made to some of the performance indicators
given as examples in the international standard on management evaluation of
environmental performance issued in 1999 by the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO 14031).
The paper looks at the extent to which the proposals under review are based
on a conceptual framework and the guidance provided as regards definition and
compilation of environmental performance indicators within the potential impact
groups:
• emissions to air and contribution to global warming;
• water use and discharge;
• waste and emissions to land;
• energy use;
• materials, use of resources and recycling.
The paper is intended to provide an overview rather than a detailed analysis.
The differing approaches adopted in the proposals give rise to the following
questions.
• Do any of the proposals assist organisations in identifying key
environmental performance indicators?
• Is there a prospect of convergence amongst \“standard setters” on the
key environmental performance indicators?
• How can internal and external users be confident that the environmental
performance indicators reported are reliable?
Keywords: indicators, environmental performance, conceptual framework,
eco-efficiency, emissions, waste, energy.
Keywords
indicators, environmental performance, conceptual framework,
eco-efficiency, emissions, waste, energy.
Related Book
Other papers in this volume
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