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A benchmarking–scoring methodology for assessing the water risk disclosures of water utilities

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  • Thomas A. Tsalis

    (Democritus University of Thrace)

  • Ioannis E. Nikolaou

    (Democritus University of Thrace)

  • Konstantinos P. Tsagarakis

    (Democritus University of Thrace)

Abstract

The increasing interest in water protection creates a new complex business environment. On account of firms’ large-scale impacts on the environment and water resources as well as the important role of specific industry sectors, such as water utilities, in water protection, various groups of stakeholders have lately requested for firms to provide transparent and extensive information about their water management strategies implemented to deal with water risks and opportunities. In this regard, sustainability reports play a critical role in informing stakeholders about their water risk performance and management practices. Despite the popularity of sustainability reports as a communication tool for environmental and water-related information, there is not a widely applied technique for evaluating and reporting water risk information. To advance the water risk reporting practices, this paper develops an evaluation framework which could assist firms, especially water utilities, in disclosing accurate and detailed information and data about water risks. The proposed methodological framework was applied in a sample of water utilities in order to examine its applicability, highlighting the strong and weak points.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas A. Tsalis & Ioannis E. Nikolaou & Konstantinos P. Tsagarakis, 2020. "A benchmarking–scoring methodology for assessing the water risk disclosures of water utilities," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(7), pages 6473-6493, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:22:y:2020:i:7:d:10.1007_s10668-019-00492-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-019-00492-4
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    Cited by:

    1. Nikolaos S. Trevlopoulos & Thomas A. Tsalis & Konstantinos I. Evangelinos & Konstantinos P. Tsagarakis & Konstantinos I. Vatalis & Ioannis E. Nikolaou, 2021. "The influence of environmental regulations on business innovation, intellectual capital, environmental and economic performance," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 41(1), pages 163-178, March.
    2. Venturelli, Andrea & Ligorio, Lorenzo & de Nuccio, Elbano, 2023. "Biodiversity accountability in water utilities: A case study," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    3. Mio, Chiara & Fasan, Marco & Scarpa, Francesco, 2023. "Materiality investor perspectives on utilities’ ESG performance. An empirical analysis of ESG factors and cost of equity," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).

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