外文翻譯--壓力下的環(huán)境審計(jì)變化和內(nèi)部審計(jì)人員作用

1、<p>　　2015單詞,12350英文字符，3630漢字</p><p>　　出處：Robert R.Tucker，Janet Kasper. Pressures for Change in Environmental Auditing and in the Role of the Internal Auditor[J]. Journal of Managerial Issues，2004，10（3）

2、：340-354.</p><p><b>　　原文：</b></p><p>　　Pressures for Change in Environmental Auditing and in the Role of the Internal Auditor</p><p>　　As the risks of financial loss and

3、 image damage from catastrophic environmental problems increase, many companies are designing systems for prevention rather than mere regulatory compliance. In the past, audit teams were typically composed of engineers a

4、nd scientists considered best able to achieve compliance with governmental regulation. However, as companies turn their focus toward designing and monitoring environmental management systems, the role of internal auditor

5、s is likely to increase be</p><p>　　Early environmental legislation focused on punishing the polluter and stopping the pollution with restraining orders and abatement procedures (Rittenberg et al., 1992). As

6、 a response, companies’ primary objective in performing the first environmental audits was compliance with regulations and the avoidance of regulatory sanctions. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is rethinki

7、ng its approach to compliance and enforcement and the role of environmental auditing. Rather than the prescri</p><p>　　Several other changes have also motivated companies to reevaluate their approach to envi

8、ronmental auditing. One change is the consistent trend toward more stringent and comprehensive environmental legislation. For example, the EPA recently recommended tighter national standards for air quality (Cushman, 199

9、6). Due to several highly publicized environmental disasters and the continual enactment of new and more comprehensive laws, an increasingly aware and skeptical public are prompting corporate </p><p>　　The p

10、urpose of this article is threefold. First, we identify and discuss changes in the risks companies face in managing environmental issues. Specifically, the discussion focuses on the new environmental standard ISO 14000 a

11、nd changes in direction at the EPA. Second, we envision the implications of these changes on management's approach to monitoring these risks, and third, we suggest steps useful in adapting to these changes and encour

12、age a reexamination of the internal auditor's role.</p><p>　　Changes in Pressures Affecting Environmental Auditing Historical Background</p><p>　　The Environmental Protection Agency was esta

13、blished in 1970 and several pieces of environmental legislation ensued in that decade, including The Clean Air Act of 1970, The Clean Water Act of 1972, and The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. This legisl

14、ation focused on punishing the violator and using administrative and court orders to achieve compliance. On the other hand, the Superfund legislation, namely the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Lia

15、bility Act (CERC</p><p>　　Although fear of regulatory enforcement was the primary force spurring the demand for environmental auditing, it alone is insufficient to explain why companies are choosing to go be

16、yond compliance. For example, 1,300 companies voluntarily accepted EPA's challenge to reduce discharges of 17 toxic pollutants by 50 percent (EPA, 1996a).</p><p>　　A report published by the Institute of

17、Internal Auditors Research Foundation, defined environmental auditing as “an integral part of an environmental management system whereby management determines whether the organization’s environmental control systems are

18、adequate to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and internal policies.” In practice, the nature of environmental audits is defined and implemented differently. Some corporations outsource this function to a th

19、ird-party consultant;</p><p>　　Pressures from the Public and Business Community</p><p>　　Environmental protection has become an important political issue for the 1990s. Public awareness has grow

20、n due to news coverage of the environmental hazards posed by acid rain, global warming, ozone layer depletion, and the clear-cutting of forests, to name a few. These concerns have been personalized by legislation mandati

21、ng vehicle emission tests and the recycling of waste that force citizens to directly address their contribution to the problem. Taxpayers are also concerned with the cleanup c</p><p>　　Another source of pres

22、sure to perform environmental audits arises from consumers who are increasingly holding companies responsible for the way they use resources. The public is becoming ever more aware of environmental issues and the potenti

23、al impact of business operations on the environment. Consumers have demonstrated a willingness to adjust their consumption habits to reflect their perceptions of a firm’s environmental performance. Though they demand hig

24、h quality products and services, consu</p><p>　　Pressures for Change Arising from Private Sector Environmental Auditing Initiatives</p><p>　　Pressure from the public, consumer groups and consume

25、rs contributed to increasing interest in defining what it means to be environmentally responsible. Principles for environmental management have been published, and standards for evaluating compliance with the principles

26、have begun to emerge. Principles or ideals inspire proper environmental stewardship whereas standards provide a basis for evaluating environmental claims and offer a flexible structure within which companies can pursue c

27、ontinua</p><p>　　The International Chamber of Commerce and Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES) have published lists of principles for environmental responsibility. Each of these calls

28、 for environmental auditing and the public disclosure of results. This would represent a change for US companies, as they have been reluctant to share audit results due to stringent regulation, fear of litigation, and EP

29、A enforcement actions for noncompliance.</p><p>　　To evaluate a company's compliance with these principles, other international organizations have developed the following three voluntary standards.</p

30、><p>　　1. British standard 7750 - 1992</p><p>　　2. Audit Scheme (Eco-Audit) - 1992</p><p>　　3. ISO 14000 - 1996</p><p>　　Of these efforts, ISO 14000 is most likely to affe

31、ct US companies. However, given the current trend toward convergence with European and International standards, companies should stay abreast of the other standards such as the Eco-Audit scheme, as some aspects of these

32、standards are more rigorous (e.g., require environmental statements be reviewed and validated). According to Kirchenstein and Jump (1995), it appears it will be only a matter of time before standards such as the Eco-Audi

33、t scheme b</p><p>　　Changing Directions at the EPA and Implications for Environmental Auditing</p><p>　　None of the laws EPA administers require environmental auditing. However, EPA in recent ye

34、ars has begun to do more research into how environmental auditing can be used to complement, and even replace, regulatory requirements. Blumenfeld and Haddad (1984) suggest many reasons why the EPA is interested in promo

35、ting environmental auditing. First, corporations that establish an environmental audit function signal to their employees that senior management is committed to improving its environmental p</p><p>　　In Marc

36、h 1995, President Clinton announced a plan to reinvent environmental regulation (Clinton and Gore, 1995). While recognizing progress made in improving the environment, the plan indicates that much work remains. The plan

37、focuses on achieving environmental results rather than adhering to procedures. The aim is to encourage innovation by giving companies some flexibility in meeting environmental regulations. At the same time, companies are

38、 expected to accept responsibility for environmental </p><p><b>　　譯文：</b></p><p>　　壓力下的環(huán)境審計(jì)變化和內(nèi)部審計(jì)人員作用</p><p>　　面對(duì)財(cái)務(wù)損失風(fēng)險(xiǎn)的增加和災(zāi)難性的環(huán)境問(wèn)題的增多，許多公司不再死守既定的規(guī)則，而是通過(guò)設(shè)計(jì)預(yù)防系統(tǒng)來(lái)應(yīng)對(duì)。在過(guò)去，由

39、工程師和科學(xué)家組成的審計(jì)小組通常被認(rèn)為最能保證政府規(guī)則被遵守。不過(guò)，現(xiàn)在由于公司把他們的重點(diǎn)轉(zhuǎn)向了設(shè)計(jì)和監(jiān)測(cè)環(huán)境管理體系，內(nèi)部審計(jì)人員的作用可能會(huì)因?yàn)樗麄冊(cè)趯徲?jì)體系中越來(lái)越重要的專業(yè)技術(shù)而增強(qiáng)。</p><p>　　早期的環(huán)境法規(guī)重點(diǎn)集中在懲罰污染者、停止和減少污染的命令與程序上（Rittenberg等，1992）。作為回應(yīng)，公司在第一次執(zhí)行環(huán)境審計(jì)的主要目標(biāo)是遵守法規(guī)和回避法規(guī)的制裁。美國(guó)環(huán)境保護(hù)署（EPA）正

40、在重新考慮環(huán)境審計(jì)的職責(zé)以及遵守和執(zhí)行環(huán)境法規(guī)的方法，而不是發(fā)布規(guī)范性的命令和控制方法，只要企業(yè)能夠?qū)崿F(xiàn)環(huán)境目標(biāo)，環(huán)保局允許企業(yè)在管理環(huán)境風(fēng)險(xiǎn)中使用更靈活的方式。在設(shè)計(jì)環(huán)境體系時(shí)，更多的合作方式采用了帶有激勵(lì)性質(zhì)的管理模式，這更符合成本效益原則、更注重預(yù)防和不斷提高的要求。美國(guó)環(huán)保署最初強(qiáng)調(diào)的是評(píng)估技術(shù)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)管理從而編制擁有像工程師、科學(xué)家等技術(shù)人員的環(huán)境審計(jì)隊(duì)伍，而現(xiàn)在強(qiáng)調(diào)的是評(píng)估過(guò)程中必須要擁有經(jīng)過(guò)訓(xùn)練和有經(jīng)驗(yàn)的內(nèi)部審計(jì)人員，并且讓他

41、們發(fā)揮更大的作用。</p><p>　　其他的一些變化也促使企業(yè)重新考慮他們的環(huán)境審計(jì)方法。其中一個(gè)變化是一致的趨向于需要更嚴(yán)格和全面的環(huán)境法規(guī)。例如，最近美國(guó)環(huán)保署提出了更嚴(yán)格的國(guó)家空氣質(zhì)量標(biāo)準(zhǔn)（庫(kù)什曼，1996年）。由于一些讓公眾高度關(guān)注的環(huán)境災(zāi)害、更新更全面的法律不斷地頒布和公眾意識(shí)的不斷提高，促使企業(yè)管理者重新考慮什么是環(huán)保責(zé)任。投資者更加關(guān)注由意外環(huán)境事故造成的大量清理成本、訴訟費(fèi)用和名譽(yù)損失，如三哩島

42、、愛(ài)運(yùn)河、?？松就郀柕掀澔虿┡翣柣瘜W(xué)災(zāi)害，投資者的這種關(guān)注可能促使企業(yè)采取相應(yīng)的預(yù)防措施來(lái)最大限度的降低下行風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。企業(yè)對(duì)一個(gè)有效的環(huán)境管理體系感興趣，也包括環(huán)境審計(jì)，也是出于對(duì)其他國(guó)家更嚴(yán)格的環(huán)保標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。對(duì)公司而言，發(fā)展這種系統(tǒng)和發(fā)現(xiàn)這些更嚴(yán)格的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)是開展國(guó)際業(yè)務(wù)的需要。美國(guó)環(huán)保局目前正在參與制定有史以來(lái)最全面的環(huán)境質(zhì)量標(biāo)準(zhǔn)——ISO 14000。由國(guó)際標(biāo)準(zhǔn)化組織（ISO）開發(fā)的這些標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，是導(dǎo)致關(guān)貿(mào)總協(xié)定談判的部分原因，他們約定在促進(jìn)

43、自由貿(mào)易的同時(shí)建立一個(gè)全球干凈的環(huán)境。為了獲得ISO 14000認(rèn)證，企業(yè)必須建立環(huán)境管理體系，用環(huán)境審計(jì)來(lái)監(jiān)察這些體系的運(yùn)行。環(huán)保署和其他政府機(jī)構(gòu)將考慮公司的認(rèn)證，并在執(zhí)行中遵守這些</p><p>　　本文的寫作目的有三個(gè)：首先，我們需討論并確定公司在管理環(huán)境問(wèn)題中面對(duì)的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)變化，具體來(lái)說(shuō)，討論的重點(diǎn)是新的環(huán)保標(biāo)準(zhǔn)——ISO 14000和環(huán)保署的方向變化；其次，我們?cè)O(shè)想這些變化對(duì)用管理的方法來(lái)監(jiān)測(cè)風(fēng)險(xiǎn)造成的影

44、響；最后，我們提出適應(yīng)這些變化的措施，并鼓勵(lì)內(nèi)部審計(jì)人員進(jìn)行復(fù)審。</p><p>　　壓力影響環(huán)境審計(jì)變化的歷史背景</p><p>　　環(huán)境保護(hù)署成立于1970年，一些環(huán)境條例在這隨后的十年中隨之出臺(tái)，包括1970年的清潔空氣法，1972年的清潔水法，以及1976年的恢復(fù)資源保護(hù)的法案。這些法規(guī)的重點(diǎn)在于懲治違法者，要求他們遵守行政命令和履行法院的判決。另外，1980年的超級(jí)基金條例，

45、即綜合環(huán)境反應(yīng)，賠償與責(zé)任法（環(huán)境法）和1986年的超級(jí)基金修訂與重新授權(quán)法案（宗教局），要求各公司對(duì)現(xiàn)有的或未來(lái)的包括有些可能是由前土地?fù)碛姓咭鸬膶?duì)環(huán)境造成破壞的潛在責(zé)任負(fù)責(zé)。許多其他聯(lián)邦、州和當(dāng)?shù)氐年P(guān)于環(huán)境與工人安全的法律，增加了復(fù)雜性和廣泛的合規(guī)性。由于遵守這些法律所產(chǎn)生的費(fèi)用、對(duì)違法行為的付出和清理環(huán)境破壞支出的增加，是企業(yè)產(chǎn)生對(duì)環(huán)境審計(jì)的需求。</p><p>　　雖然對(duì)監(jiān)管執(zhí)法的恐懼是促進(jìn)環(huán)境審計(jì)需

46、求的主要力量，但它不足以解釋為什么公司選擇超越規(guī)則。例如，1300家公司自愿接受環(huán)保局的挑戰(zhàn)，減少排放17種有毒污染物的50%（環(huán)保局，1996年）。</p><p>　　內(nèi)部審計(jì)研究基金會(huì)研究所發(fā)表的一份報(bào)告，定義環(huán)境審計(jì)為“完整的環(huán)境管理體系，包括管理層決定組織環(huán)境控制體系是否足以符合法規(guī)要求和內(nèi)部政策的要求?！痹趯?shí)踐中，環(huán)境審計(jì)的本質(zhì)定義和實(shí)施方式是不同的。有些公司將其委托給第三方顧問(wèn)；另外的公司依靠技術(shù)人

47、員和聘用的內(nèi)部審計(jì)人員進(jìn)行環(huán)境審計(jì)。環(huán)境審計(jì)的關(guān)鍵是遵守政府法規(guī)，尤其是在商業(yè)計(jì)劃、報(bào)告、雇員的發(fā)展和社會(huì)公共關(guān)系中（馬師和約翰遜，1995年）。審計(jì)小組通?？梢砸庾R(shí)到潛在的環(huán)境問(wèn)題和風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，從而分析這些風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，找出潛在的問(wèn)題，提出解決的措施。環(huán)境審計(jì)人員經(jīng)常鼓勵(lì)進(jìn)一步發(fā)展環(huán)境政策報(bào)告書、環(huán)境管理體系和環(huán)境審計(jì)程序。由于私人財(cái)產(chǎn)的獲得會(huì)使公司在財(cái)產(chǎn)發(fā)生預(yù)先購(gòu)買時(shí)對(duì)環(huán)境污染負(fù)有責(zé)任，因此審計(jì)師需要評(píng)估環(huán)境風(fēng)險(xiǎn)和明確財(cái)產(chǎn)獲得與剝奪所負(fù)的責(zé)任（坎

48、貝爾和拜因頓，1995年），同時(shí)審計(jì)人員還要在重視環(huán)境責(zé)任的財(cái)務(wù)會(huì)計(jì)目標(biāo)中扮演一個(gè)關(guān)鍵的角色。</p><p>　　壓力來(lái)自公共和商業(yè)界</p><p>　　環(huán)境保護(hù)已成為上世紀(jì)90年代一個(gè)重要的政治問(wèn)題。由于新聞媒體對(duì)環(huán)境危害的報(bào)道，如酸雨，全球變暖，臭氧層耗竭，以及森林砍伐等，使公眾環(huán)境意識(shí)不斷地增強(qiáng)。通過(guò)法規(guī)規(guī)定公民要主動(dòng)進(jìn)行車輛廢氣測(cè)試和廢物回收，這些環(huán)境意識(shí)個(gè)性化。納稅人也關(guān)注有

49、毒廢料場(chǎng)的環(huán)境凈化成本，這些成本估計(jì)超過(guò)1000億美元（Rittenberg等，1992）。因?yàn)楣妼?duì)環(huán)境問(wèn)題、工業(yè)意外事故的高度敏感，例如導(dǎo)致了50億美元賠償?shù)腂hopol、印度的化工污染或?？松就郀柕掀澥托孤@些對(duì)公司的社會(huì)形象和股票造成了重大的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。環(huán)境凈化成本、訴訟費(fèi)和名譽(yù)損失成本的不斷上升，導(dǎo)致董事會(huì)的董事、投資者和銀行通過(guò)環(huán)境審計(jì)尋求一種保證，以使公司能夠維持盈利。他們想要的這種保證是能使公司目前的活動(dòng)不會(huì)導(dǎo)致承擔(dān)平

50、均2500萬(wàn)美元來(lái)清除環(huán)境破壞。急劇增加的成本和巨大損失的可能性風(fēng)險(xiǎn)導(dǎo)致利益相關(guān)者從長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)角度看問(wèn)題，他們承認(rèn)實(shí)行環(huán)境審計(jì)來(lái)預(yù)防環(huán)境破壞比處理造成的后果更符合成本效益。</p><p>　　進(jìn)行環(huán)境審計(jì)的另一種壓力來(lái)源于消費(fèi)者，公司所使用資源的方式需要對(duì)消費(fèi)者負(fù)責(zé)。公民越來(lái)越意識(shí)到環(huán)境問(wèn)題以及商業(yè)經(jīng)營(yíng)對(duì)環(huán)境的潛在影響。消費(fèi)者已經(jīng)表示愿意調(diào)整自己的消費(fèi)習(xí)慣，以反映他們對(duì)一個(gè)公司環(huán)境保護(hù)的看法。雖然消費(fèi)者要求高質(zhì)量的產(chǎn)

51、品和服務(wù)，但他們也希望企業(yè)的產(chǎn)品能對(duì)環(huán)境負(fù)責(zé)。此外，可持續(xù)發(fā)展的概念正廣泛的被傳播?？沙掷m(xù)發(fā)展意味著滿足公司當(dāng)前需要的同時(shí)也要滿足子孫后代的需要。為了實(shí)現(xiàn)可持續(xù)發(fā)展，企業(yè)必須考慮：1）他們目前對(duì)自然資源的消耗是否可以被子孫后代再利用；2）生產(chǎn)過(guò)程對(duì)環(huán)境造成的影響；3）產(chǎn)品的使用和處置對(duì)環(huán)境的影響。由于這些原因，管理需要一個(gè)信息系統(tǒng)，用于對(duì)環(huán)境影響的反饋，其中包括控制目的和支持環(huán)境索賠，以促進(jìn)公司對(duì)社會(huì)負(fù)責(zé)。</p><

52、;p>　　壓力來(lái)自私人單位對(duì)環(huán)境審計(jì)的主動(dòng)權(quán)的變化</p><p>　　來(lái)自公眾、消費(fèi)者團(tuán)體的壓力有助于提高一定范圍內(nèi)的利益，這意味著存在環(huán)境責(zé)任。環(huán)境管理的準(zhǔn)則已經(jīng)出版，同時(shí)符合這些準(zhǔn)則的評(píng)估標(biāo)準(zhǔn)也已經(jīng)開始出現(xiàn)。激勵(lì)的原則為適當(dāng)?shù)沫h(huán)境管理標(biāo)準(zhǔn)提供了一個(gè)用于評(píng)估環(huán)境索賠的依據(jù)和公司可以追求持續(xù)經(jīng)營(yíng)的靈活結(jié)構(gòu)。對(duì)環(huán)境負(fù)責(zé)的經(jīng)濟(jì)商會(huì)（CERES）已經(jīng)公布了環(huán)境責(zé)任條例。每一條條例都號(hào)召公司進(jìn)行環(huán)境審計(jì)和公開披露

53、調(diào)查結(jié)果。以美國(guó)公司的變化為例，因?yàn)閲?yán)格的監(jiān)管、訴訟恐懼和環(huán)保局對(duì)違規(guī)的執(zhí)法行動(dòng)，所以他們?cè)辉敢夥窒韺徲?jì)結(jié)果。</p><p>　　為了評(píng)價(jià)一個(gè)公司對(duì)這些原則的遵守情況，其他國(guó)際組織已制定了以下三個(gè)推薦性標(biāo)準(zhǔn)：</p><p>　　1、英國(guó)標(biāo)準(zhǔn)7750-1992年；</p><p>　　2、審計(jì)計(jì)劃（生態(tài)審計(jì)）-1992年；</p><p>

54、;　　3、ISO 14000–1996年</p><p>　　這些標(biāo)準(zhǔn)中，ISO 14000是最有可能影響美國(guó)的公司。然而，鑒于與歐洲和國(guó)際準(zhǔn)則的趨同性，企業(yè)應(yīng)該保持掌握諸如生態(tài)審計(jì)計(jì)劃等的其他標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，因?yàn)檫@些標(biāo)準(zhǔn)在某些方面更加嚴(yán)格（例如，要求環(huán)保聲明進(jìn)行審查和驗(yàn)證）。根據(jù)Kirchenstein和Jump（1995年）的說(shuō)法，掌握其他標(biāo)準(zhǔn)似乎只是一個(gè)時(shí)間問(wèn)題，例如生態(tài)審計(jì)計(jì)劃將成為強(qiáng)制性的準(zhǔn)則并支持出口的國(guó)家都需

55、要遵守（威利格，1995）。</p><p>　　在環(huán)保局改變方向和環(huán)境審計(jì)的暗示</p><p>　　沒(méi)有法律要求環(huán)保局管理環(huán)境審計(jì)。然而，近年來(lái)環(huán)保局已開始進(jìn)行更多關(guān)于如何將環(huán)境審計(jì)用作補(bǔ)充，甚至取代法規(guī)要求的研究。布盧門菲爾德和哈達(dá)德（1984）提出了很多關(guān)于環(huán)保局對(duì)環(huán)境審計(jì)感興趣的原因。第一，公司在雇員之間建立環(huán)境審計(jì)，以使高級(jí)管理層致力于提高環(huán)境績(jī)效。此外，環(huán)境審計(jì)的開展也導(dǎo)致了

56、公司內(nèi)部的專業(yè)人員對(duì)環(huán)境問(wèn)題感興趣。第二，環(huán)境審計(jì)有效的解決了監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)獲得有限的資源合規(guī)監(jiān)控的問(wèn)題。第三，環(huán)境審計(jì)幫助執(zhí)法行動(dòng)確定目標(biāo)，因?yàn)樗芨煽康膮^(qū)分執(zhí)行者和違反者。最后，環(huán)境審計(jì)具有改善政府與工業(yè)之間長(zhǎng)期發(fā)展關(guān)系的可能性。除了進(jìn)行制裁外，環(huán)保局還可以承認(rèn)和鼓勵(lì)企業(yè)展示環(huán)境管理創(chuàng)新的辦法。除了自愿參加ISO 14000標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的起草，環(huán)保局已著手制定多項(xiàng)關(guān)于鼓勵(lì)企業(yè)使用環(huán)境審計(jì)的措施，如環(huán)保領(lǐng)袖計(jì)劃和XL項(xiàng)目。這些變化的發(fā)生，是企業(yè)重

57、新使用環(huán)境規(guī)則的動(dòng)力。</p><p>　　1995年3月，克林頓總統(tǒng)宣布了重新確立改造環(huán)境規(guī)則的計(jì)劃（克林頓和戈?duì)枺?995年）。雖然環(huán)境改善取得了一定的進(jìn)展，但該計(jì)劃表明，仍有許多工作要做。該計(jì)劃側(cè)重于實(shí)現(xiàn)環(huán)境的結(jié)果，而不是堅(jiān)持程序，其目的是鼓勵(lì)企業(yè)通過(guò)環(huán)境法規(guī)中給予的靈活性進(jìn)行創(chuàng)新，同時(shí)希望企業(yè)承擔(dān)環(huán)境責(zé)任。 </p><p>　　來(lái)源：羅伯特塔克，珍妮特卡斯珀.壓力下的環(huán)境審計(jì)變化