Top 300 still lagging in green disclosure: survey

Age
Thursday 11/9/2008 Page: 4

HALF of Australia's biggest companies are failing to provide public information about their environmental or greenhouse policies, according to research on company disclosure. The lack of disclosure is denying shareholders information that will become vital when an emissions trading scheme is introduced, and is also limiting the commercial opportunities available to companies among today's environmentally aware public. A survey of the largest 300 companies listed on the ASX found that only 28% provided any information on "policies or practices that have been undertaken to reduce greenhouse gases".

Conducted by consultancy Grant Thornton, the survey examined the 2007-08 annual reports and websites of companies in the S&P/ASX 300. It found that only 52% publicly disclosed their environmental practices, and only 36% provided information on their human resource policies, including information on maternity and carer's leave.

The director of business risk services at Grant Thornton, Peter Moloney, said the results surprised him and he thought companies had failed to understand the commercial value of good environmental policies. If you are bidding for work with major corporations, both in Australia and overseas. whether you as a supplier can demonstrate that you have sound environmental credentials is pretty important," he said.

"Not communicating that information can put you at a disadvantage commercially." Although the number of businesses reporting their greenhouse policies doubles in the top 100 companies to 48%, this still means 52% of Australia's biggest companies are failing to provide any information from "a greenhouse perspective". Disclosure improves slightly for environmental work (70%) and community work (70%).

Mr Moloney said companies needed to be demonstrating what they were doing from a corporate social responsibility perspective because "it is high on the agenda in the public mind". While emissions disclosure will become mandatory by August next year under new reporting regulations, companies should already be demonstrating an awareness, according to the chairman of the Australian Shareholders Association, Ian Curry. "We would certainly expect to see companies giving some indication about how they see themselves in terms of being an emitter or clean operation," Mr Curry said. "We would see that as a step that they should have been looking at and have some idea about where they stand."