United States
                  Environmental Protection
                  Agency
Office of
Prevention, Peaticides,
and Toxic Substances
March 2000
EPA/742/F-00/007
Mission: To encourage and motivate businesses to
understand the fiill spectrum of their environmental
costs and integrate these costs into decision-making.'

Background: Traditional methods of managerial
accounting   hide   the  financial  benefits   of
implementing  more   efficient,  cleaner,  and
environmentally-sound technologies and practices.
As a consequence, industrial managers often may
not adopt such pollution preventing practices even
when it might be in the best interest of a company to
do so.

EPA initiated the Environmental Accounting Project
in 1992  to  encourage businesses to  incorporate
environmental costs into managerial accounting and
capital budgeting practices. An increased focus on
these costs and the closer tracking of these costs to
the  responsible products  and processes  gives
managers an incentive to identify opportunities for
reducing or  eliminating those costs.  As a result,
companies can achieve improved environmental
performance, gain competitive advantage, and enjoy
cost  savings and enhanced revenues.

The  Project  collaborates  with  the  business
community,   accounting and other  professional
societies, the academic and research community,
government, and  other stakeholder  groups  to
advance  the  development  and  application   of
environmental managerial accounting concepts and
methodologies.   Its  activities include  funding
research;  developing  case  studies  and  other
educational materials; supporting the development
of training courses and tools; and providing these
resources to  industry and other stakeholders.

The  Environmental  Accounting   Project, also
maintains   an   international  Environmental
Accounting Network Directory of individuals who
are advancing environmental accounting.  .
                                                                        Environmental
                                                                        Accounting
                                                                        Project
                                                                        USEPA

      Examples of Accomplishments to Date:   :
      i/ Primer on environmental accounting  terms,:
      •   concepts, and applications'  ••;.
        Case   studies   on   enhancing  materials
         management decision-making through improved
         environmental cost management

      To  obtain  these  products  and obtain further
      information   see  the  Project's   website  at'
      www.epa.gov/opptinir/acctg  or  contact,  EPA's
      Pollution Prevention Information Clearinghouse at
      202/260-1023,   fax  202/260-4659,   or
      ppic@epamail.epa.gov..                 —    .

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