Environmental issues are increasingly important in both developed and developing nations. The need to collect information on environmental performance and to provide a means for appropriate environmental decision making is becoming more important. Pressure to control pollution and to remediate environmental damage is unlikely to decrease. Taking a proactive stance toward environmental costs is potentially beneficial in terms of risk reduction, prevention of liabilities, and the preservation of firm reputation. Managerial accounting can provide assistance in identifying and controlling environmental costs in several ways.

Environmental Issues and Managerial Accounting: The IFAC Exposure Draft. Lee, Tanya, Spring 2005, pp. 1‑22.

The Institute of Petroleum Accounting at the University of North Texas in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P. has periodically over the years conducted a survey of accounting practices in the oil and gas extractive industry. By comparing the 2001 survey results with that of the 1999 survey this article considers some of the major changes observed as the industry entered the new millennium.

Changes in Accounting Practices in the Oil and Gas Industry: A 2001 Survey. Styles, Alan, Spring 2005, pp. 23‑58.

This is the third part of a four-part series on fiscal system analysis. Meta-modeling is not a new idea, but is novel and useful as applied to fiscal system analysis and contract valuation. Modeling take and economic measures in this manner is especially useful for contract negotiation strategies and plays a central role in understanding the intricate mechanics of fiscal system analysis. The purpose of this paper is to quantify the influence of private and market uncertainty on the computation of the economic and system measures of a field.

A Meta-Modeling Approach to Fiscal System Analysis—Part III. Production Sharing Agreements. Kaiser, Mark J. and Pulsipher, Allan G., Spring 2005, pp. 59‑92.

Recently the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) issued International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 6, “Exploration for and Evaluation of Mineral Resources.” While there is currently no timetable for doing so, the IASB intends to comprehensively address the issue of accounting and reporting for companies in the extractive industries, including upstream oil and gas exploration and production. Meanwhile, IFRS 6 is intended to add clarity and guidance, especially for those companies that are transitioning to IASB standards in 2005.

Current Developments in Environmental Issues. Wright, Charlotte, Spring 2005, pp. 93‑95.