The relationship between financial attributes, environmental performance and environmental disclosure

Abstract

Purpose An increasing number of business organizations around the world are engaged in the accounting reporting on non-financial performance aspects, mainly within the field of environmental responsibility. The purpose of this paper is to assess the association between environmental disclosure and environmental performance and examine the financial attributes of companies using a composite disclosure index to investigate the status of the environmental disclosure practices of the top 40 companies operating in France. Design/methodology/approach The sample used in this study consists of the 40 largest companies operating in France (index CAC 40). Findings The findings of the study show that environmental disclosure is positively associated to environmental performance. Financial attributes, such as firm size, the need for capital, profitability and capital spending, are positively associated with environmental disclosure quality. Equally, a high quality of environmental disclosure will reflect the effectiveness of corporate governance and would tend to face fewer difficulties in accessing capital markets. The authors found that firms revealed on healthcare and gas oil business sector disclose more environmental information than other industries. Originality/value A web-based search was performed during the fourth quarter of 2014, locating the corporate websites of the sample firms. The sample period is 2011-2013 (108 firm-year observations).