Environmental costs are any costs related to the environment, which can result from, for example, the loss of natural capital that companies are dependent on, impacts on human health and the environment or environmental legislation-related compliance costs.
Environmental benefits are any benefits related to the environment, which can result from, for example, natural resources used within products or the production processes of a given organization, including their value chain.
Understanding its environmental costs and benefits allows an organization to:
- link environmental impacts and dependencies to its decision-making processes
- create a better understanding of issues, eg. financial implications related to the environmental aspects of a site
- improve operational performance, risk management, investment decisions and corporate communications
- help an organization to manage its environmental dependencies and mitigate its environmental impacts
This document provides organizations with guidance on:
- determining and documenting environmental costs and benefits in a comprehensive and transparent way, either quantified in monetary or nonmonetary terms, or described qualitatively.
- assessing environmental costs and benefits either ex-ante or ex-post.
- helping organizations to disclose and exchange relevant information.
