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Sustainability Accounting and Accountability in Public Water Companies

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  • Carlos Larrinaga-Gonzélez
  • Vincente Pérez-Chamorro

Abstract

This article analyses the ways that Spanish public water companies communicate sustainability information to their stakeholders and explores whether distinctive and more progressive accountability is possible in the public sector in comparison with private sector organizations. Two distinct activities are identified in sustainable accountability: public organizations are engaged in informal as well as formal reporting activity, and their reporting seems to be coupled with real organizational strategies and operational activities.

Suggested Citation

  • Carlos Larrinaga-Gonzélez & Vincente Pérez-Chamorro, 2008. "Sustainability Accounting and Accountability in Public Water Companies," Public Money & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(6), pages 337-343, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:pubmmg:v:28:y:2008:i:6:p:337-343
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9302.2008.00667.x
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    1. Carol A. Adams & Carlos Larrinaga‐González, 2007. "Engaging with organisations in pursuit of improved sustainability accounting and performance," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(3), pages 333-355, June.
    2. Jan Bebbington & Colin Higgins & Bob Frame, 2009. "Initiating sustainable development reporting: evidence from New Zealand," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 22(4), pages 588-625, May.
    3. Parker, Lee D., 2011. "Twenty-one years of social and environmental accountability research: A coming of age," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 35(1), pages 1-10.
    4. Cregård Anna & Sobis Iwona, 2017. "Dissemination of Environmental Information and its Effects on Stakeholders’ Decision-Making: A Comparative Study between Swedish and Polish Municipalities," NISPAcee Journal of Public Administration and Policy, Sciendo, vol. 10(2), pages 9-47, December.
    5. Dorothea GREILING & Birgit GRUB, 2015. "Towards Citizen Accountability Of Local Public Enterprises," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 86(4), pages 641-655, December.
    6. Nick Sciulli, 2011. "The views of managers from a local coastal council on sustainability reporting issues," Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 8(2), pages 139-160, June.
    7. Passetti, Emilio & Rinaldi, Leonardo, 2020. "Micro-processes of justification and critique in a water sustainability controversy: Examining the establishment of moral legitimacy through accounting," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 52(3).
    8. Veronica P. Lima Ribeiro & Cristina Aibar‐Guzman, 2010. "Determinants of environmental accounting practices in local entities: evidence from Portugal," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 6(3), pages 404-419, August.
    9. Carmela Gulluscio & Pina Puntillo & Valerio Luciani & Donald Huisingh, 2020. "Climate Change Accounting and Reporting: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-31, July.
    10. 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.
    11. Sandra Escamilla-Solano & Antonio Fernández-Portillo & Jessica Paule-Vianez & Paola Plaza-Casado, 2019. "Effect of the Disclosure of Corporate Social Responsibility on Business Profitability. A Dimensional Analysis in the Spanish Stock Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-17, November.
    12. Silvia Cantele & Thomas A. Tsalis & Ioannis E. Nikolaou, 2018. "A New Framework for Assessing the Sustainability Reporting Disclosure of Water Utilities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-12, February.
    13. Venturelli, Andrea & Ligorio, Lorenzo & de Nuccio, Elbano, 2023. "Biodiversity accountability in water utilities: A case study," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    14. Escamilla Solano, Sandra & Plaza Casado, Paola & Flores Ureba, Sandra, 2016. "Análisis de la divulgación de la información sobre la responsabilidad social corporativa en las empresas de transporte público urbano en España," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 195-203.
    15. Jan Bebbington & Carlos Larrinaga‐González & Jose M. Moneva‐Abadía, 2008. "Legitimating reputation/the reputation of legitimacy theory," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 21(3), pages 371-374, March.
    16. Carol A. Adams & Glen Whelan, 2009. "Conceptualising future change in corporate sustainability reporting," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 22(1), pages 118-143, January.

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