An update of recent SEC and FASB activities including a report on the EITF meetings regarding liability recognition for costs to exit an activity and SEC emphasis on derivatives and financial instruments. Also included is a report on AICPA release on understanding derivatives.

Current Developments in Financial Accounting and Reporting. Jennings, Dennis R., Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 1‑10.

A report from the executive director on the various committees and subcommittees of the Council of Petroleum Accountants Societies.

COPAS Update. Gear, Jon, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 11‑14.

Answers to reader's questions on inventory of oil in lease storage tanks, producing property subject to net profits interest, and cost of 3D seismic study of existing, producing reservoir by successful efforts company.

Accounting Forum. Brock, Horace, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 15‑17.

Twelve years ago, in the inaugural issue of the Journal, Dr. Wright wrote an article addressing the issue of reclamation costs of oil and gas operations. Since then, numerous state and federal government regulations have passed which require companies to clean up, remediate, and protect the environment. This article revisits the topic of accounting for future dismantlement and environmental reclamation costs as they relate to the oil and gas industry.

Accounting for Future Dismantlement and Environmental Reclamation Costs in the Oil and Gas Industry: A Survey of Current Problems and Practices. Wright, Charlotte, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 18‑32.

This paper explores some of factors associated with the development of a corporate accounting policy by the Royal Dutch/Shell group of companies in relation to environmental clean-up activities and identifies some of the accounting issues addressed in the preparation of that policy.

Development of a Corporate Accounting Policy: Environmental Clean-Up Obligations. Harris, G. J., Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 33‑45.

Anecdotal evidence indicates that the Exxon Valdez accident raised public concern over petroleum shipping and increased regulatory activity. This study examines the Impact of that incident on the oil and gas industry.

Intra-Industry Effects of the Exxon-Valdez Oil Spill. Cho, Jang Youn; File, Richard G.; and Kwak, Wikil, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 46‑63.

Considerable diversity exists in the accounting treatment of issues related to what is variously described as abandonment, decommissioning or restoration. This article reviews the UK's Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) on accounting for abandonment and includes the results of a survey of the actual disclosures of UK oil and gas companies.

Accounting for Abandonment in the UK Oil and Gas Industry. Luther, Robert, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 64‑87.

Environmental awareness and pressures familiar to the oil and gas industry in the U.S. have become a global phenomenon. U.S. companies doing business abroad may minimize risks by taking a pro-active stance toward environmental issues when negotiating production contracts with foreign governments and government-owned petrochemical companies.

The Economics of Environmental Issues in International Oil and Gas Exploration and Production. Kotvis, Jill A., Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 88‑97.

This article reports the results of a follow-up study to a 1993 article in the Journal on disclosure of future removal and site restoration cost liability by Canadian oil and gas companies.

Disclosure of the Future Removal and Site Restoration Cost Liability by Canadian Oil and Gas Companies: A Replication and Extension. Tilleman, William A. and Wright, Michael E., Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 98‑116.

Due to the proliferation of laws regulating and protecting the environment, environmental due diligence on the part of oil and gas companies should include full disclosure of all existing or potential liabilities that pertain to such laws.

Environmental Due Diligence. Blossom, Stan, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 117‑121.

Petroleum firms will bear a significant portion of the cost of environmental clean-ups mandated by the Superfund, and it appears that many firms have significant liabilities that have not yet been recorded. This article summarizes the empirical findings of Superfund research to date.

Accounting for Superfund: A Review of Recent Research. Mitchell, Laurie Bond, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 122‑131.

As the estimates of environmental clean-up costs skyrocket, the SEC's concern that these costs have not yet passed through financial statements has led to a pro-active policy on environmental accounting and disclosure.

The Continuing Environmental Accounting Challenge Facing the Petroleum Industry. Surma, John and Petracca, Dean, Fall/Winter 1994, pp. 132‑149.