The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) Wednesday published a guide to help reporting issuers meet existing environmental disclosure requirements.

CSA Staff Notice 51-333 Environmental Reporting Guidance is intended to assist issuers in assessing which information must be disclosed on material environmental matters, such as risks related to weather patterns or environmental legislation. These disclosure requirements are set out primarily in National Instrument 51-102 Continuous Disclosure Obligations.

Environmental matters comprise a broad range of issues, including air, land, water and waste. The CSA says these matters can affect issuers in several ways, including interrupting operations, resulting in material unplanned costs, providing new business opportunities, and potentially affecting reputation, capital expenditures, and a licence to operate.

“Greater transparency is needed regarding the nature and extent of environmental risks and other environmental matters,” says Jean St-Gelais, chairman of the CSA and president and CEO of Quebec’s Autorité des marchés financiers. “This guidance should greatly assist issuers in complying with their disclosure obligations, which would ultimately provide investors with much more complete information on environmental matters.”

IE