Green Accounting for Staying Out of the Red

With the UNDP estimating that environmental degradation costing Pakistan over Rs. 350b every year, the need for following green agendas is self-evident. At a recent workshop, experts suggested the introduction of 'green accounting' frameworks to calculate the costs of environmental depletion. The WWF agrees with earlier assessments that the costs of environmental degradation are as high as 6% of the GDP and needs a concerted mix of fiscal, monetary and managerial steps to reduce these costs. Businesses often tend to ignore or underestimate such costs but as was clearly indicated by speakers at the event, it's time their books stay in the green in the more ways than one.