GASPRO International Journal of Eminent Scholars

ABSTRACT Environmental reporting is an ingredient of sustainable development. However this ingredient seems to be inadequately recognized in South African business terrains. The aim of this study is to examine the extent of environmental disclosures in quoted oil and gas and construction industries in South Africa. A comparative asnalysis of the content of environmental information provided in the 2005-2009 annual reports of the sample firms was conducted to ascertain the degree of comprehensiveness of such disclosures and if there exists significant differences between both industries. Findings indicate that the oil and gas industry provided a better disclosure level but this difference was not significant. More so, both industries presented very scanty environmental information in their annual reports which was in agreement with the arguments of the study. This paper however recommends amongst others that companies perceive environmental reporting as a moral and corporate duty, and that standard setters draft a comprehensive framework for reporting environmental concerns. Keywords: Annual Reports, Content Analysis, Environmental Reporting, Legitimacy, Sustainable Development