Audit Committee Characteristics and Carbon Emission Disclosure

Abstract

Business activities have contributed to the increasing level of carbon emissions, which can endanger the environment. Such phenomena have pushed companies to disclose a variety of carbon emission information to show their responsibilities. Thus, this study aims to investigate the influence of audit characteristics (independence, expertise, meetings) on carbon emission disclosure. Data were collected from the Nordic companies, which were registered in the 2015 Carbon Disclosure Project. A total of 105 companies were used as samples for further analysis. A regression model was then employed to analyse the data. The findings showed that all characteristics of audit committees (independent audit committee, audit committee expertise and audit committee meetings) positively affected carbon emission disclosure. This study implies that companies that are interested in disclosing carbon emission information should create more independent members of audit committees whose expertise or experiences are in accounting/finance/risk. The audit committee members should be also actively involved in regular meetings to monitor and evaluate company's policy on carbon emission disclosure.