Improving environmental auditing of production costs

Disregard of overall environmental and social costs is being remedied to some degree by the introduction of concepts such as the "user pays principle", "full cost accounting" and "end of pipe" costing, but much remains to be considered at the level of subtle and indirect effects.

Environmental auditing of activities and companies, through schemes such as the European Union's Environmental Management and Auditing Scheme, and full life-cycle analysis of products can help to raise awareness, among both producers and consumers, of the environmental implications of their actions. Such schemes should be made mandatory, so far as possible, to ensure comprehensive coverage and establish a "level playing field", and extended to cover health implications.

An increasing number of corporate buyers are demanding comprehensive environmental and social information on the products or materials they purchase - a practice that has become known as supply-chain auditing.