This paper highlights the importance of environmental reporting in effective corporate governance. It studies the environmental reporting patterns of companies from major Asian economies and finds out the reasons for such disclosure patterns. The reporting practices of Indian companies have been studied in detail and compared with 25 major companies across six continents of the world, which are global benchmarks in environmental reporting. Indian companies stand poorly in this sphere of corporate governance. A new framework for environmental reporting has been proposed that will address the existing gaps in reporting.

In 1993, Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) of USA faced a lawsuit for allegedly polluting the water supply of Hinkley, California. Erin Brockovich, a legal assistant who lined up around 650 plaintiffs and filed a lawsuit against the business conglomerate, alleged that PG&E was leaching a rust inhibitor, Chromium VI, into Hinkley's water supply. The suit blamed the chemical for dozens of symptoms ranging from nosebleeds to breast cancer, Hodgkin's disease, miscarriages and spinal deterioration in the population of Hinkley. In 1996, PG&E had to settle the case for $333 mn, the largest settlement ever paid in a direct action lawsuit in US history. Erin Brockovich became an overnight celebrity in the US. In 2000, a Hollywood movie based on her life was released and she became famous throughout the world.

The case of Erin Brockovich is a nice "David beats the Goliath" true story with a female protagonist. But more than that, it raises the serious issue of environmental reporting. The Environmental Protection Agency (USA) does consider Chromium VI a human carcinogen. But it's linked only to the cancer of lung and septum.