最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的環(huán)境審計(jì)活動(dòng)外文翻譯、中英對(duì)照、英漢互譯

1、<p>　　畢業(yè)論文外文文獻(xiàn)翻譯</p><p>　畢業(yè)設(shè)計(jì)（論文）題目關(guān)于企業(yè)內(nèi)部環(huán)境績(jī)效審計(jì)的研究</p><p>　翻譯題目最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的環(huán)境審計(jì)活動(dòng)</p><p>　學(xué) 院會(huì)計(jì)學(xué)院</p><p>　專 業(yè)會(huì)計(jì)學(xué)</p><p>　姓 名</p><p>　

2、班 級(jí)</p><p>　學(xué) 號(hào)</p><p>　指導(dǎo)教師</p><p>　　最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的環(huán)境審計(jì)活動(dòng)</p><p>　　最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)越來(lái)越多的活躍在環(huán)境審計(jì)領(lǐng)域。特別是1993-1996年期間，工作組已檢測(cè)到環(huán)境審計(jì)活動(dòng)堅(jiān)定的數(shù)量增長(zhǎng)。首先，越來(lái)越多的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)已經(jīng)活躍在這個(gè)領(lǐng)域。其次是積極的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，甚至變得更加

3、活躍：他們分配較大部分的審計(jì)資源給這類工作，同時(shí)出版更多環(huán)保審計(jì)報(bào)告。表1顯示了平均數(shù)字。然而，這里是機(jī)構(gòu)間差異較大。例如，環(huán)境報(bào)告的數(shù)量變化，每個(gè)審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)從1到36份報(bào)告不等。</p><p>　　1996-1999年期間，結(jié)果是不那么容易詮釋。第一，活躍在環(huán)境審計(jì)領(lǐng)域的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)數(shù)量并沒(méi)有太大變化。 “活性基團(tuán)”的組成沒(méi)有保持相同的：一些最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)進(jìn)入，而其他最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)離開(kāi)了團(tuán)隊(duì)。環(huán)境審計(jì)花費(fèi)的時(shí)間量略

4、有增加。二，但是，審計(jì)報(bào)告數(shù)量略有下降，1996年和1999年之間。這些數(shù)字可能反映了從量到質(zhì)的轉(zhuǎn)變。這個(gè)信號(hào)解釋了在過(guò)去三年從規(guī)律性審計(jì)到績(jī)效審計(jì)的轉(zhuǎn)變（1994-1996年，20％的規(guī)律性審計(jì)和44％績(jī)效審計(jì);1997-1999：16％規(guī)律性審計(jì)和績(jī)效審計(jì)54％） 。在一般情況下，績(jī)效審計(jì)需要更多的資源。我們必須認(rèn)識(shí)到審計(jì)的范圍可能急劇變化。在將來(lái)，再將來(lái)開(kāi)發(fā)一些其他方式去測(cè)算人們工作量而不是計(jì)算通過(guò)花費(fèi)的時(shí)間和發(fā)表的報(bào)告會(huì)是很有趣

5、的。</p><p>　　在2000年，有62個(gè)響應(yīng)了最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)并向工作組提供了更詳細(xì)的關(guān)于他們自1997年以來(lái)公布的工作信息。在1997-1999年，這62個(gè)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)公布的560個(gè)環(huán)境審計(jì)報(bào)告。當(dāng)然，這些報(bào)告反映了一個(gè)龐大的身軀，可用于其他機(jī)構(gòu)的經(jīng)驗(yàn)。環(huán)境審計(jì)報(bào)告的參考書(shū)目可在網(wǎng)站上的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)國(guó)際組織的工作組看到。這里這個(gè)信息是用來(lái)給最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的審計(jì)工作的內(nèi)容更多一些洞察。</p>&

6、lt;p>　　自1997年以來(lái)，少數(shù)環(huán)境審計(jì)是規(guī)律性審計(jì)（560篇報(bào)告中有87篇，占16％）。大多數(shù)審計(jì)績(jī)效審計(jì)（560篇報(bào)告中有304篇，占54％），或組合的規(guī)律性和績(jī)效審計(jì)（560篇報(bào)告中有169篇，占30％）。如前文所述，績(jī)效審計(jì)是一個(gè)廣泛的概念。在實(shí)踐中，績(jī)效審計(jì)往往集中于環(huán)保計(jì)劃的實(shí)施（560篇報(bào)告中有264篇，占47％），符合國(guó)家環(huán)保法律，法規(guī)的，由政府部門(mén)，部委和/或其他機(jī)構(gòu)的任務(wù)給訪問(wèn)（560篇報(bào)告中有212篇，占

7、38％）。此外，審計(jì)經(jīng)常被列入政府的環(huán)境管理系統(tǒng)（560篇報(bào)告中有156篇，占28％）。下面的元素得到了關(guān)注審計(jì)報(bào)告：影響或影響現(xiàn)有的國(guó)家環(huán)境計(jì)劃非環(huán)保項(xiàng)目對(duì)環(huán)境的影響;環(huán)境政策;由政府遵守國(guó)際義務(wù)和承諾的10％至20％。許多績(jī)效審計(jì)包括以上提到的要素之一。</p><p>　　環(huán)境政策和計(jì)劃，包括范圍廣泛的環(huán)境問(wèn)題，而這樣做的審計(jì)報(bào)告。在上一次調(diào)查中，最常見(jiàn)的審計(jì)問(wèn)題是公共機(jī)構(gòu)或部門(mén)（162的560個(gè)報(bào)告，29

8、%），淡水（131 560，</p><p>　　23%（103），廢560報(bào)告，18%），與自然和娛樂(lè)（102的560報(bào)告，18%）。這些最常見(jiàn)的主題是大致相同的世界各地。除了這些主題，吸引了許多其他問(wèn)題中文全稱：海洋污染，空氣污染，氣候變化，土壤污染/污染的場(chǎng)所，環(huán)境和人類健康，減少噪音，生物多樣性生態(tài)系統(tǒng)管理，農(nóng)業(yè)，農(nóng)藥，災(zāi)難管理和應(yīng)急準(zhǔn)備，工業(yè)污染，礦物質(zhì)和天然資源，挖掘，漁業(yè)，運(yùn)輸，放射性，等等。<

9、;/p><p>　　為了得到更好的理解最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)在實(shí)踐中環(huán)境審計(jì)的工作，收集了有關(guān)水問(wèn)題的50份報(bào)告。 “水”的主題，是因?yàn)樗?jīng)常被最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)審核，并在過(guò)去的6年中，這是中心主題工作組內(nèi)的經(jīng)驗(yàn)交流。收集的所有報(bào)告有不同的側(cè)重點(diǎn)。</p><p>　　一些處理財(cái)務(wù)的控制和管理問(wèn)題，以及水的問(wèn)題作為一個(gè)次要的主題。幾乎所有的報(bào)告都作為起點(diǎn)，如缺乏獲得清潔水，或污染的河流和湖泊水的社會(huì)問(wèn)題。為了

10、讓環(huán)境審計(jì)在實(shí)踐中有一個(gè)廣泛的變化想法，下面給出一些例子進(jìn)行簡(jiǎn)要說(shuō)明：</p><p>　　規(guī)律性審計(jì)的一個(gè)例子是中國(guó)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)（1999）進(jìn)行污水處理廠，對(duì)營(yíng)運(yùn)資金的審計(jì)重點(diǎn)。結(jié)果發(fā)現(xiàn)，污水處理費(fèi)水平低，工廠收到的補(bǔ)貼及營(yíng)運(yùn)資金提供給工廠之間存在相當(dāng)大的差距。中國(guó)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)建議，污水處理費(fèi)應(yīng)逐步提高，以確保工廠的正常運(yùn)作。</p><p>　　以下是一個(gè)績(jī)效審計(jì)的例子：</p&

11、gt;<p>　　符合“拉姆薩爾公約”關(guān)于保護(hù)濕地和兩個(gè)相關(guān)的歐盟指令是荷蘭最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)（1999）的主題。在這次審計(jì)中，有關(guān)濕地也被列入國(guó)家環(huán)保計(jì)劃的實(shí)施。主要結(jié)果是荷蘭起草了許多的管理和恢復(fù)濕地的計(jì)劃，但這些計(jì)劃的實(shí)施在實(shí)踐中往往是有問(wèn)題的或極其緩慢。由于操作性不足的國(guó)際義務(wù)，國(guó)家政策的自然管理部與地方政府簽訂協(xié)議，履行國(guó)際義務(wù)。因此，地方當(dāng)局非常了解客觀方面的義務(wù)。</p><p>　　在審計(jì)

12、的賽埃及的預(yù)防污染對(duì)尼羅河（2000），遵守國(guó)家規(guī)章制度是最重要的一方面。審計(jì)的重點(diǎn)是遵守環(huán)境規(guī)則，法規(guī)，標(biāo)準(zhǔn)和保障保護(hù)尼羅河流域和其他新鮮水道，所采取的行動(dòng)侵犯，和國(guó)家衛(wèi)生系統(tǒng)。</p><p>　　西的法國(guó)審計(jì)的污染水是用于人類消費(fèi)（2002）。審計(jì)報(bào)告表明了困境可持續(xù)發(fā)展平衡的經(jīng)濟(jì)和社會(huì)目標(biāo)與環(huán)境目標(biāo)。主要的結(jié)論是，盡管公共支出審計(jì)1993以來(lái)，一直沒(méi)有顯著的改善在水質(zhì)。本條例旨在調(diào)和水域的保護(hù)與農(nóng)業(yè)活動(dòng)被

13、忽視了贊成后者。此外，條例監(jiān)測(cè)的主要是很差為了避免意外污染和不污染擴(kuò)散源。</p><p>　　在2000年，毛里求斯國(guó)家最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)對(duì)泄漏飲用水儲(chǔ)存和配送系統(tǒng)進(jìn)行了審計(jì)。這次審計(jì)的原因是大量去向不明的水（UFW）（在1998年和1999年生產(chǎn)總量的47％左右），導(dǎo)致“水強(qiáng)調(diào)”國(guó)家毛里求斯的分類。結(jié)合降雨，由2010年的20％以上，估計(jì)增加的食水需求的減少，構(gòu)成一個(gè)迫切需要解決的問(wèn)題的國(guó)家。這一短缺嚴(yán)重阻礙經(jīng)濟(jì)和

14、社會(huì)發(fā)展。審計(jì)處認(rèn)為，如果UFW降低到2010年的35％的目標(biāo)可以實(shí)現(xiàn)，沒(méi)有其他主要水資源有被利用。 UFW高水平的原因主要是承包商表現(xiàn)不佳，監(jiān)測(cè)他們的工作不足，自來(lái)水公司，大量使用不合格的材料，普遍短缺，材料，設(shè)備，和熟練的勞動(dòng)力，和有限的工作規(guī)范。最后一個(gè)例子是一個(gè)審計(jì)的西貢的美國(guó)狀態(tài)（2000），其中的重點(diǎn)是政策信息。西決定是否在信息國(guó)家水質(zhì)庫(kù)存的環(huán)境保護(hù)局（美國(guó)環(huán)保署）是可靠的和有代表性的全國(guó)水質(zhì)條件。此外，它審查現(xiàn)有的數(shù)據(jù)，以

15、確定它們是否是足以讓政府官員使密鑰管理決定水質(zhì)。</p><p>　　這是不可能的“水政策”，這些報(bào)告的基礎(chǔ)上制定的一般性結(jié)論。在科目和審計(jì)問(wèn)題的變化太寬。當(dāng)然，這從來(lái)沒(méi)有去過(guò)這些審計(jì)的目的。然而，有一個(gè)元素，這似乎是一個(gè)中央政策的實(shí)施和組織問(wèn)題：缺乏足夠和可靠的信息。錢(qián)上花的基本信息，活動(dòng)的開(kāi)展，輸出交付，取得的影響，可用于密鑰管理和政策決策，往往似乎沒(méi)有足夠的。這些類型的問(wèn)題進(jìn)行鑒定，在幾乎所有的水的審計(jì)報(bào)告

16、。</p><p>　　國(guó)際協(xié)議及與最高審計(jì)機(jī)構(gòu)的合作</p><p>　　環(huán)境問(wèn)題在自然中通常是跨界的。例如：全球變暖，臭氧層耗竭，海洋污染，和自然資源的開(kāi)發(fā)，如：石油、天然氣、熱帶森林的木材。再者，一些區(qū)域性問(wèn)題：主要河流的水質(zhì)量問(wèn)題，可持續(xù)利用魚(yú)類資源，和調(diào)查環(huán)境犯罪往往跨越邊界民族國(guó)家。因此，許多國(guó)家尋求國(guó)際合作解決環(huán)境問(wèn)題。這導(dǎo)致了越來(lái)越多的關(guān)于環(huán)境問(wèn)題的國(guó)際協(xié)議。這些協(xié)議有：關(guān)

17、于環(huán)境變化的京東協(xié)議書(shū)，瀕危動(dòng)物植物的國(guó)際慣例，制定公約防止海洋船舶污染，巴塞爾公約控制越境轉(zhuǎn)移危險(xiǎn)廢物，拉姆薩爾公約保護(hù)濕地，和生物多樣性公約。</p><p>　　協(xié)定成員國(guó)批準(zhǔn)后，各國(guó)政府負(fù)責(zé)實(shí)施的國(guó)際義務(wù)，在本國(guó)的政策方案和立法。最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)可以通過(guò)審計(jì)促進(jìn)國(guó)際環(huán)境合作與國(guó)際義務(wù)和承諾遵守本國(guó)政府。</p><p>　　世界審計(jì)組織環(huán)境審計(jì)工作組想要刺激這種類型的審計(jì)，審核程序及國(guó)

18、際協(xié)定的選擇提供指引。工作組已經(jīng)這樣做了，不僅因?yàn)閷徲?jì)本身可能是有用的，但也因?yàn)檫@些審計(jì)提供優(yōu)良的可能性的合作和最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)之間的信息交換，審查共同問(wèn)題，并分享具體審計(jì)項(xiàng)目的想法。</p><p>　　最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)國(guó)際組織第一個(gè)指導(dǎo)交易的主題為“最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)如何合作可能經(jīng)營(yíng)的國(guó)際環(huán)保協(xié)議”（最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)國(guó)際組織，1998年）的審計(jì)。最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)國(guó)際組織的指導(dǎo)意見(jiàn)“標(biāo)準(zhǔn)和環(huán)境審計(jì)指引”（最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)國(guó)際組織，200

19、1年）中的方法論問(wèn)題得到了答復(fù)。在選擇環(huán)境協(xié)定審計(jì)前，工作小組對(duì)文件“國(guó)際環(huán)保協(xié)議的審計(jì)”（國(guó)際審計(jì)組織環(huán)境審計(jì)工作組，2001b）的交易與風(fēng)險(xiǎn)進(jìn)行了分析。</p><p>　　大多數(shù)最后問(wèn)卷調(diào)查的回應(yīng)表明，他們樂(lè)意在不就的將來(lái)同其他國(guó)家的最高審計(jì)機(jī)構(gòu)就國(guó)家環(huán)境審計(jì)達(dá)成協(xié)議（76%，2102）。越來(lái)越多的國(guó)家最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)已經(jīng)在環(huán)境領(lǐng)域的合作審計(jì)和/或與審計(jì)環(huán)境協(xié)議方面得到了經(jīng)驗(yàn)。幾個(gè)已經(jīng)聯(lián)合或協(xié)調(diào)的國(guó)家最高審計(jì)機(jī)

20、關(guān)進(jìn)行了審計(jì)海洋污染。合作主要發(fā)生在區(qū)域一級(jí)，他們共有一個(gè)水的對(duì)象起點(diǎn)。</p><p>　　一些聯(lián)合審計(jì)的例子已經(jīng)給定，八個(gè)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)審計(jì)“公約”關(guān)于保護(hù)波羅的海海洋環(huán)境（最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，丹麥，愛(ài)沙尼亞，芬蘭，拉脫維亞，立陶宛，波蘭，俄羅斯，瑞典，2001）。波蘭，捷克共和國(guó)和斯洛伐克共和國(guó)的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)聯(lián)合審核的實(shí)施和履行關(guān)于保護(hù)波羅的海（2002）注入河流的水質(zhì)污染的任務(wù)。</p><p

21、>　　其他八個(gè)主要是歐洲各國(guó)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的審計(jì)協(xié)議污染海域的船舶（以色列，2001年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，荷蘭，2001年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，英國(guó)，2002年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，2002年塞浦路斯，馬耳他，2003年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān);世2003年意大利，希臘，2003年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)法國(guó)和聯(lián)合報(bào)告，報(bào)告在準(zhǔn)備中）。三個(gè)斯堪的納維亞的最高審計(jì)機(jī)構(gòu)進(jìn)行審核，“保護(hù)東北大西洋海洋環(huán)境公約”，其中涉及海洋污染的陸基源（SAIS

22、丹麥，冰島，挪威，2001）。</p><p>　　其他審計(jì)相關(guān)的一條河流，跨越（一）邊境（次）。五最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)審計(jì)索菲亞公約“關(guān)于保護(hù)和可持續(xù)利用多瑙河（最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，保加利亞，2001年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，克羅地亞，2002年，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，羅馬尼亞，2002年，斯洛伐克共和國(guó)和斯洛文尼亞最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)報(bào)告：在準(zhǔn)備中），哥倫比亞和委內(nèi)瑞拉一起工作河上Ta'chira的計(jì)劃（最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)，哥倫比亞，2002年

23、）。</p><p>　　此外，發(fā)生其他形式的國(guó)際合作，如交換信息和審計(jì)方法，審計(jì)工作并不受一項(xiàng)國(guó)際協(xié)議（如在城市的飲用水供應(yīng)），或聯(lián)合培訓(xùn)課程和研討會(huì)上的一個(gè)共享主題合作。</p><p>　　若要稽核一個(gè)國(guó)際性的的環(huán)境協(xié)定，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)是之間的的合作不是一個(gè)先決條件條件。一些最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)審核符合他們的政府與單獨(dú)的國(guó)際協(xié)定。一些例子：西加拿大審計(jì)“巴塞爾公約”危險(xiǎn)廢物（1997），“蒙特

24、利爾議定書(shū)”和“維也納公約”臭氧損耗和氣候變化公約“（1998年），”生物多樣性公約“（1998年）。該美國(guó)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)（1999年）之經(jīng)審核在“京都議定書(shū)”上的氣候變化的。荷蘭最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)以及審計(jì)（2002年）。新西蘭最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)最高審核管理的多邊協(xié)議，涉及問(wèn)責(zé)制和報(bào)告四個(gè)國(guó)際環(huán)境協(xié)定（2001年）。秘魯世審計(jì)野生動(dòng)植物（2001）在瀕危物種國(guó)際貿(mào)易公約“。</p><p>　　最近，在歐洲，亞洲，非洲，拉丁美

25、洲和太平洋地區(qū)，區(qū)域環(huán)境審計(jì)工作組已經(jīng)成立。這些團(tuán)體將繼續(xù)并加強(qiáng)在區(qū)域一級(jí)，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)之間的合作在不久的將來(lái)提供一個(gè)良好的平臺(tái)。</p><p><b>　　結(jié)論</b></p><p>　　主要結(jié)論可以得出的調(diào)查中表示如下。</p><p>　　●環(huán)境計(jì)劃和方案的制定，由政府在1993年和1996年之間迅速增長(zhǎng)?，F(xiàn)在，大多數(shù)國(guó)家都建立了某種

26、形式的環(huán)保政策。然而，在許多國(guó)家的審計(jì)機(jī)構(gòu)，制定環(huán)境政策的清晰度是開(kāi)放的改善。</p><p>　　●幾乎所有的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)可以應(yīng)用到所有的政府部門(mén)，包括環(huán)保部門(mén)的一般授權(quán)。大多數(shù)的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)有權(quán)做“事后”的審計(jì)，包括正常或財(cái)務(wù)審計(jì)和績(jī)效審計(jì)或衡工量值式。</p><p>　　●最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)越來(lái)越多的成為活躍在環(huán)境審計(jì)領(lǐng)域。經(jīng)過(guò)定量的增長(zhǎng)，績(jī)效審計(jì)轉(zhuǎn)變，從規(guī)律性被發(fā)現(xiàn)?，F(xiàn)在，一半以上的最

27、高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的審計(jì)工作環(huán)境審計(jì)是一項(xiàng)重大的常規(guī)部分。</p><p>　　●最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)可以通過(guò)審計(jì)促進(jìn)國(guó)際環(huán)境合作與國(guó)際環(huán)境的義務(wù)和承諾遵守本國(guó)政府。世界審計(jì)組織環(huán)境審計(jì)工作組要激發(fā)這種類型的審計(jì)，審核程序及國(guó)際協(xié)定的選擇提供了指引。此外，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)之間的合作是一個(gè)很好的方式來(lái)交流經(jīng)驗(yàn)，互相學(xué)習(xí)。在過(guò)去的5年期間，一些進(jìn)行聯(lián)合環(huán)境審計(jì)，主要是在區(qū)域一級(jí)。最近成立的區(qū)域工作組將提供一個(gè)平臺(tái)，以繼續(xù)并加強(qiáng)最高審計(jì)機(jī)

28、關(guān)之間的合作在不久的將來(lái)。</p><p>　　最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)國(guó)際組織的工作組的調(diào)查結(jié)果，最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)在環(huán)境審計(jì)的發(fā)展提供了一次見(jiàn)識(shí)。在未來(lái)，這將是有趣的，更詳細(xì)地評(píng)估對(duì)環(huán)境的貢獻(xiàn)，改善環(huán)境治理和政策表現(xiàn)的最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的審計(jì)工作。此外，這將是很有意思的評(píng)價(jià)最高審計(jì)機(jī)關(guān)的審計(jì)國(guó)際環(huán)境協(xié)定：聯(lián)合和協(xié)調(diào)審計(jì)項(xiàng)目的核數(shù)師的專業(yè)技能的貢獻(xiàn)之間的國(guó)際合作優(yōu)勢(shì)，與合作的質(zhì)量的影響審計(jì)。這也將是有趣的，以評(píng)估是否聯(lián)合審計(jì)，國(guó)際環(huán)境

29、合作做出更大的貢獻(xiàn)比僅僅通過(guò)最高審計(jì)機(jī)構(gòu)的單項(xiàng)審核。</p><p>　　Environmental Audit Activities of SAIs</p><p>　　A growing number of SAIs are active in the field of environmental auditing. Particularly for the period 1993–1

30、996, the Working Group has detected a firm quantitative growth of environmental auditing activities. First, more SAIs have become active in this field. Second, active SAIs even have become more active: they have allocate

31、d a larger part of their audit resources to his type of work and published more environmental audit reports. Table 1 shows the average figures. However, here are large di</p><p>　　For the period 1996–1999, t

32、he results are not so easy to interpret. First, the number of SAIs active in the field of environmental auditing did not change much. The composition of the “active group” did not remain the same: some SAIs entered, whil

33、e other SAIs left the group. The amount of time spent on environmental auditing increased slightly. Second, however, the number of audit reports dropped slightly between 1996 and 1999. These figures might reflect a shift

34、 from quantity to quality. A sign</p><p>　　In 2000, 62 of the responding SAIs provided the Working Group with more detailed information on their work, published since 1997. In 1997–1999, these 62 SAIs publis

35、hed 560 environmental audit reports. Of course these reports reflect a huge body of experience that can be used by other institutions. A bibliography of environmental audit reports is available on the Web site of the INT

36、OSAI Working Group. Here this information is used to give some more insight into the content of the audit work of SA</p><p>　　Since 1997, a minority of the environmental audits are regularity audits only (87

37、 of the 560 reports, 16%). Most audits are performance audits (304 of the 560 reports, 54%), or a combination of regularity and performance audits (169 of the 560 reports, 30%). As stated before, performance auditing is

38、a broad concept. In practice, performance audits were very often concentrated on the implementation of environmental programs (264 of the 560 reports, 47%) and on compliance with national environment</p><p>

39、　　The environmental policies and programs include a wide range of environmental issues, and so do the audit reports. In the last survey, the most frequently audited issues were internal environmental management by public

40、 authorities or departments (162 of 560 reports, 29%), fresh water (131 of 560 reports, 23%), waste (103 of 560 reports, 18%), and nature and recreation (102 of 560 reports, 18%). These most common topics were roughly th

41、e same in all parts of the world. Besides these</p><p>　　topics, many other issues attracted the attention of SAIs: marine pollution, air pollution, climate change, soil pollution/contaminated sites, the env

42、ironment and human health, noise reduction, biodiversity and ecosystems management, agriculture, pesticides, disaster management and emergency preparedness, industrial pollution, minerals and natural resources, mining, f

43、ishery, transport, radioactivity, and so on.</p><p>　　To get a better understanding of the environmental audit work of SAIs in practice, about 50 reports related to water issues were gathered. The theme “wat

44、er” was chosen because it was frequently audited by SAIs and it was the central theme for the exchange of experiences within the Working Group during the past 6 years. The reports collected all have a different focus.<

45、;/p><p>　　Some deal with financial control and management issues, and have water issues as a secondary subject. Nearly all reports have water problems in society as a starting point, such as the lack of access

46、to clean water, or the pollution of rivers and lakes. To give an idea of the wide variation of environmental audits in practice, some examples are briefly described.</p><p>　　An example of a regularity audit

47、 is an audit focused on the operating funds of a wastewater treatment plant, conducted by the SAI of China (1999). It was found that the wastewater treatment fee level was low, and a rather big gap existed between the su

48、bsidy the plant receives and the operating funds available to the plant. The Chinese SAI recommended that the fee for wastewater treatment should be raised step by step to ensure normal operation of the plant.</p>

49、<p>　　The following audits examples are performance audits.</p><p>　　Compliance to the Ramsar Convention on the Protection of Wetlands and two related European Union directives was the subject of an au

50、dit by the SAI of The Netherlands (1999). In this audit, the implementation of national environmental programs related to wetlands was also included. The main findings were that The Netherlands had drafted many plans for

51、 the management and restoration of wetlands, but in practice the implementation of these plans was often problematic or extremely slow. The internat</p><p>　　In the audit by the SAI of Egypt on the preventio

52、n of pollution of the Nile River (2000), compliance to national rules and regulations was the most important aspect. The audit was focused on compliance with environmental rules, legislations, and standards that safeguar

53、d</p><p>　　protection of the Nile River and other fresh waterways, the actions taken against violations, and the state of the sanitation system.</p><p>　　The SAI of France did an audit on the po

54、llution of water that is intended for human consumption (2002). The audit report illustrates the dilemma of sustainable development— balancing the economic and social objectives with the environmental objectives. The mai

55、n conclusion of the audit was that despite public expenditure since 1993, there has been no significant improvement</p><p>　　in water quality. The regulations designed to reconcile water protection with agri

56、cultural activities</p><p>　　were ignored in favor of the latter. Moreover, the regulations were poorly monitored and were primarily designed to avert accidental pollution and not pollution</p><p&

57、gt;　　from diffuse sources.</p><p>　　In 2000, the SAI of Mauritius conducted an audit on leakage in potable water storage and distribution systems. The reason for this audit was a large volume of unaccounted-

58、for-water (UFW) (around 47 percent of total production in 1998 and 1999) that led to the classification of Mauritius as a “water stressed” country. The decrease in rainfall in combination with an estimated increase in th

59、e demand for potable water by more than 20% by 2010 poses an urgent problem for the country. This shortage ca</p><p>　　The last example is an audit of the SAI of the United States (2000), which is focused on

60、 policy information. The SAI determined whether the information in the National Water Quality Inventory of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was reliable and representative of water-quality conditions nationwide.

61、 Moreover, it reviewed available data to determine whether they were sufficient to allow state officials to make key management decisions regarding water quality. </p><p>　　It is not possible to formulate a

62、general conclusion on “water policy” based on these reports. The variation in subjects and audit questions is too wide. Of course, this had never been the purpose of these audits. Nevertheless, there is one element that

63、does seem to be a central problem of policy implementation and organization: the lack of sufficient and reliable information. Basic information on money spent, activities carried out, outputs delivered, and impacts achie

64、ved, to be used for key ma</p><p>　　International Agreements and Cooperation Between SAIs</p><p>　　Environmental problems are often transboundary in nature. Examples of global environmental prob

65、lems are global warming, depletion of the ozone layer, ocean pollution, and the exploitation of natural resources such as oil and gas or wood from tropical forests. Also, regional problems such as the water quality in ma

66、jor rivers, sustainable use of fish stocks, or the investigation</p><p>　　of environmental crimes often cross the borders of national states. Therefore, many countries seek international cooperation to solve

67、 environmental problems. This has resulted in a growing number of international agreements on environmental issues. Examples of international environmental agreements are the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change, the Convent

68、ion on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Ships, the Basel </p><p>　　After ratification of the agreements by the member

69、 countries, national governments are responsible for implementing the international obligations in their national policy programs and legislation. SAIs can contribute to international environmental cooperation by auditin

70、g the compliance of their national government with international obligations and commitments. </p><p>　　The INTOSAI Working Group on environmental auditing wants to stimulate this type of audit and has provi

71、ded guidelines for the audit process and the selection of international agreements. The Working Group has done this not only because the audit itself might be useful, but also because these audits provide excellent possi

72、bilities for cooperation and the exchange of information between SAIs, to examine common issues, and to share ideas on specific audit topics.</p><p>　　The first INTOSAI Guidance deals with the subject “How S

73、AIs may co-operate on the audit of international environmental accords” (INTOSAI, 1998). Methodological questions were answered in the INTOSAI Guidance “Standards and guidelines on environmental auditing” (INTOSAI, 2001)

74、. The Working Group Paper “The audit of international environmental accords” (INTOSAI Working Group on Environmental Auditing, 2001b) deals with the risk-analysis, preceding the selection of an environmental agreement to

75、 aud</p><p>　　The majority of SAIs that responded to the last questionnaire indicated that they were interested in cooperation with another SAI to audit an international environmental agreement in the near f

76、uture (76%, N=102). A growing number of SAIs already have experience with cooperation in the field of environmental auditing and/or with auditing an environmental agreement. Several joint or coordinated audits were perfo

77、rmed on marine pollution. Cooperation mainly occurred on a regional level, with a share</p><p>　　Some examples of joint audits are given. Eight SAIs audited the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Env

78、ironment of the Baltic Sea (SAIs of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Sweden, 2001). The SAIs of Poland, the Czech Republic, and the Slovak Republic jointly audited the implementation and

79、fulfilment of tasks concerning the protection of water pollution of rivers emptying into the Baltic Sea (2002).</p><p>　　Eight other—mainly European—SAIs audited agreements on pollution of the sea by ships (

80、SAI of Israel, 2001; SAI of The Netherlands, 2001; SAI of the United Kingdom, 2002; SAI of Cyprus, 2002; SAI of Malta, 2003; SAI of Greece, 2003; SAI of Italy, 2003; report of the SAI of France and joint report, in prepa

81、ration). Three Scandinavian SAIs performed an audit on the OSPAR Convention, which deals with pollution of the sea by land-based sources (SAIs of Denmark, Iceland, and Norway, 2001).</p><p>　　Other audits we

82、re related to a river that crosses (a) border(s). Five SAIs audited the Sofia Convention on the Protection and Sustainable Use of the River Danube (SAI of Bulgaria, 2001; SAI of Croatia, 2002; SAI of Romania, 2002; repor

83、ts of the SAIs of Slovak Republic and Slovenia: in preparation), and Colombia and Venezuela worked together on the River Ta´chira Project (SAI of Colombia, 2002). </p><p>　　Also, other forms of internat

84、ional cooperation occurred, such as the exchange of information and audit methods, cooperation on audit work on a shared subject not regulated by an international agreement (such as drinking-water supplies in cities), or

85、 joint training courses and seminars.</p><p>　　To audit an international environmental agreement, cooperation between SAIs is not a prerequisite condition. Several SAIs audited the compliance of their govern

86、ment with international agreements alone. Some examples: The SAI of Canada audited the Basel Convention on Hazardous Waste (1997), the Montreal Protocol and the Vienna Convention on Ozone Depletion, and the Convention on

87、 Climate Change (1998), and the Convention on Biological Diversity (1998). The SAI of the United States (1999) audited t</p><p>　　Recently, in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Pacific, regional w

88、orking groups on environmental auditing have been established. These groups will provide a good platform to continue and enhance the cooperation between SAIs at the regional level in the near future.</p><p>

89、　　Conclusions</p><p>　　The main conclusions that can be drawn from the survey among SAIs are as follows.</p><p>　　● The formulation of environmental plans and programs by governments grew rapidl

90、y between 1993 and 1996. Now, most countries have established some form of environmental policy. However, according to the audit institutions in many countries, the clarity of the environmental policy formulation is open

91、 to improvement.</p><p>　　● Nearly all SAIs have a general mandate that can be applied to all sectors of the government including the environmental sector. Most SAIs are entitled to do “ex post” audits, incl

92、uding regularity or financial audits and performance audits or value for money audits.</p><p>　　● A growing number of SAIs became active in the field of environmental auditing. After a quantitative growth, a

93、 shift from regularity to performance audits was noticed. Now, environmental auditing is a substantial and regular part of the audit work of more than half of the SAIs.</p><p>　　● SAIs can contribute to inte

94、rnational environmental cooperation by auditing the compliance of their national government with international environmental obligations and commitments. The INTOSAI Working Group on environmental auditing wants to stimu

95、late this type of audit, and has provided guidelines for the audit process and the selection of international agreements. Moreover, cooperation between SAIs is a good way to exchange experiences and to learn from each ot

96、her. During the last 5 years, s</p><p>　　The results of the survey of the INTOSAI Working Group provide a first insight in the development of environmental auditing by SAIs. In the future it would be interes

97、ting to evaluate in greater detail the contribution of the environmental audit work of SAIs to the improvement of environmental governance and policy performance. Also, it would be interesting to evaluate the added advan