The economic repercussions of ISO 14001 environmental certification

Abstract

This study is an empirical contrast on the effect that the announcement of the gaining of ISO 14001 certification by a firm has on its market value. The analysis is based on a sample of 80 observations of environmental quality certification of the shop-floor systems or processes of large Spanish companies listed on the continuous trading market of the Madrid Stock Exchange in the period from 1996-2002. Results were obtained by use of Event Study methodology and they showed that ISO 14001 certification does not represent a sufficiently clear sign of environmental proactivity to generate expectations of long-term efficiency and profits in the capital market.