Website disclosure of environmental compliance management—the case of European production companies

Abstract

AbstractCompanies are expected to comply with environmental laws and regulations. They also face increasing stakeholder interest in information about environmental compliance management efforts. Corporate websites serve today’s enterprises as an important medium for voluntary environmental disclosure. However, relatively little research has addressed the topic of environmental compliance management. This empirical study explores current practices of website disclosure of environmental compliance management. Data were collected through a randomly selected sample of 154 European production companies in two groups of medium-sized and very large companies. Environmental management issues concerning the functionalities and disclosure subjects observed on the company websites were recorded. The analyses revealed that in general, corporate websites contain little information about environmental management and environmental compliance management, and large companies disclose more than small companies. The results also indicate that the disclosure practices of some countries deviate remarkably from those of other countries in the sample.