The Role of Esg Business Reporting in Water Management

Abstract

The rational use of water resources by business structures requires the development of appropriate strategies and their adherence to the chosen policy in terms of management of these objects: drawing up programs and plans, introducing environmental protection actions, displaying the economic effect and documenting all transactions, minimizing negative impacts on the environment and presentation of the positive and negative consequences of the use of natural resources in the format of ESG reporting, which discloses information about the activities of companies in the field of Environmental aspects, Social responsibility and Corporate Governance. This practice positions companies as an active participant in sustainable development and allows them to increase their own ratings, which makes it possible to have advantages in attracting investments and targeted financing, increasing one's own competitiveness due to improved trust in such companies, etc. Improving the quality of information in ESG reporting on water resources management and related processes allows stakeholders to receive complete and reliable information when making management decisions. On the basis of the study of ESG reporting of 8 corporations from Ukraine in terms of the use of water resources during the implementation of the strategy of sustainable development, positive and problematic practices of companies were identified when preparing the necessary data for reporting. During this analysis, the experience and legislative guidelines on the exploitation of water resources and the use of ecological and economic accounting of water in the countries were taken into account. In addition, approaches to applying the level of materiality in ESG reporting were analyzed when reporting in this format. The results of the study made it possible to rank the elements of water resources management of economic entities according to the rule of materiality of data in ESG reporting and to propose an algorithm for compiling ESG reporting in the part of water resources management, taking into account the level of materiality. The article substantiates the directions of providing companies with adequate information on water resources management measures and reflecting such practices in ESG reporting to meet the needs of internal and external users. The directions of further scientific research in the field of reporting on the use of water resources by various business entities are also outlined. A critical analysis of the peculiarities of ESG reporting in the area of water resources management can provide an opportunity for top managers of domestic companies to improve the quality of financial and non-financial information, which, in turn, will contribute to the improvement of the corporate governance system on the one hand, and on the other hand, improve the satisfaction of information users. requests of all stakeholders when making their own management decisions.