Threshold considerations in deciding to conduct an environmental audit and the scope of the audit

Conference · Sun Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 1997

OSTI ID:483703

Amandes, C B ^[1]

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1. Vinson and Elkins L.L.P., Houston, TX (United States)

In the last ten to fifteen years, environmental auditing increasingly has been used by the regulated community to detect instances of noncompliance with federal, state, or local environmental laws. Although there has been substantial controversy about collateral issues, such as whether to provide a legal privilege to audit reports, few question the utility of an environmental audit as a compliance management tool and--at least for larger entities--environmental audits are nearly as commonplace as financial audits. The most obvious threshold consideration is whether to conduct an environmental audit or regular program of audits at all. If that inquiry is answered affirmatively, additional considerations include what should be audited, how should the audit be conducted, when should the audit or audits occur, and who should perform the audit. This paper explores the legal and practical concerns that may guide the evaluation of the threshold considerations to conducting an environmental audit. It describes the various legal, regulatory, and policy statements that inform the threshold auditing decision and then discusses how these factors may be evaluated.

• OSTI ID: 483703
• Report Number(s): CONF-970146--; ISBN 1-890277-00-2
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
COMPLIANCE AUDITS
DECISION MAKING
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
LEGAL ASPECTS