Environmental Management Accounting Procedures and Principles

Environmental Management Accounting
Procedures and Principles
Material flow accounting 15 is used to check the database with respect to its consistency and,
on the basis of various calculations, to assign data to the flow model. Material flow accounting
comprises the following individual elements:
- material flow quantity accounting,
- material flow value accounting, and
- material flow cost accounting.
System cost accounting is based on material flow accounting and is used in a multi-stage
procedure to assign system costs to the material flow model. System cost accounting
comprises the following individual elements:
- system cost delimitation,
- system cost allocation, and
- system cost apportionment. 16
The results and report forms define the way in which the data in flow cost accounting is
edited and made available to staff.
The “material flow model with data” is the most important result form. Compared with previous
accounting approaches, this shows much more information. For an exemplary material flow
model with material flow values and delivery and disposal costs please refer to the annex.
The “flow cost matrix” shows the outgoing material flows, e.g., products and packaging, and
allocates material losses to the following categories: material costs, system costs, and delivery
and disposal costs. The flow cost matrix represents in table form flow cost accounting data in
simplified and standardized form at a defined cross-section in the flow model.
15 Cf. also Strobel and Wagner (1999).
16 Cf. especially Hessisches Ministerium für Wirtschaft (1999).
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