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The Benefits and Costs of Environmental Information Disclosure: What Do We Know About Right to Know?

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  • Beierle, Thomas

Abstract

Following the attacks of September 11, 2001, the Environmental Protection Agency and other government agencies removed information from their websites that they feared could invite attacks on critical public and private infrastructure. Accordingly, the benefits and costs of environmental information disclosure programs have come under increasing scrutiny. This paper provides a framework for examining these benefits and costs, and illustrates the framework through three brief case studies of information disclosure programs: risk management planning, materials accounting, and the Sector Facility Indexing Program. The paper closes by using these three cases to outline what we know and still need to find out about information disclosure programs.

Suggested Citation

  • Beierle, Thomas, 2003. "The Benefits and Costs of Environmental Information Disclosure: What Do We Know About Right to Know?," RFF Working Paper Series dp-03-05, Resources for the Future.
    • Handle: RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-03-05
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    File URL: http://www.rff.org/RFF/documents/RFF-DP-03.05.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mark Stephan, 2002. "Environmental Information Disclosure Programs: They Work, but Why?," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 83(1), pages 190-205, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Hyunhoe Bae, 2012. "Reducing Environmental Risks by Information Disclosure: Evidence in Residential Lead Paint Disclosure Rule," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(2), pages 404-431, March.
    2. Xiaofang Chen & P.R. Weerathunga & Mohammad Nurunnabi & K.M.M.C.B. Kulathunga & W.H.M.S. Samarathunga, 2020. "Influences of Behavioral Intention to Engage in Environmental Accounting Practices for Corporate Sustainability: Managerial Perspectives from a Developing Country," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-30, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    disclosure; Toxics Release Inventory; risk management planning; materials accounting; Sector Facility Indexing Project; right-to-know;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q28 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Government Policy

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