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The Benefits and Costs of Disclosing Information about Risks: What Do We Know about Right‐to‐Know?

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  • Thomas C. Beierle

Abstract

Following the attacks of September 11, 2001, the Environmental Protection Agency and other government agencies removed information from their websites that they feared could invite attacks on critical public and private infrastructure. Accordingly, the benefits and costs of environmental information disclosure programs have come under increasing scrutiny. This article describes a framework for examining these benefits and costs and illustrates the framework through brief case studies of two information disclosure programs: risk management planning and materials accounting. The article outlines what we know and still need to find out about information disclosure programs in order to appropriately balance benefits and costs.

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  • Thomas C. Beierle, 2004. "The Benefits and Costs of Disclosing Information about Risks: What Do We Know about Right‐to‐Know?," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(2), pages 335-346, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:riskan:v:24:y:2004:i:2:p:335-346
    DOI: 10.1111/j.0272-4332.2004.00435.x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Mark Stephan, 2002. "Environmental Information Disclosure Programs: They Work, but Why?," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 83(1), pages 190-205, March.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Omaima A.G. Hassan, 2018. "The impact of voluntary environmental disclosure on firm value: Does organizational visibility play a mediation role?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(8), pages 1569-1582, December.
    3. Noonan, Douglas S. & Sadiq, Abdul-Akeem, 2019. "Community-scale Flood Risk Management: Effects of a Voluntary National Program on Migration and Development," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 92-99.
    4. Aarti Gupta, 2010. "Transparency to What End? Governing by Disclosure through the Biosafety Clearing House," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 28(1), pages 128-144, February.

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