Federation University BUACC5934 Financial Accounting Assignment Report

This report critically reviews six research papers related to financial accounting and sustainability, focusing on topics such as mine waste management, corporate environmental disclosures, and environmental reporting standards. The papers explore issues like the impact of technology, media attention, and board composition on environmental reporting practices. The report also analyzes the 2017 sustainable development report of Rio Tinto, examining the company's performance across various aspects like people, community relationships, environmental protection, governance integrity, and value chain practices. The analysis highlights Rio Tinto's commitments and progress in these areas, providing a comprehensive overview of its sustainability efforts and alignment with GRI standards and the ICMM framework.

Running Head: FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING
FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Discussion..................................................................................................................................2
Part 1..........................................................................................................................................2
Articles Review......................................................................................................................2
Article 1..............................................................................................................................2
Article 2..............................................................................................................................3
Article 3..............................................................................................................................4
Article 4..............................................................................................................................5
Article 5..............................................................................................................................6
Article 6..............................................................................................................................6
Part B..........................................................................................................................................7
Sustainable Development Report of Rio Tinto......................................................................7
Conclusion................................................................................................................................10
Reference..................................................................................................................................11

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Introduction
Sustainable development, for the business organizations means adopting the
strategies as well as activities, which would be meeting needs of the stakeholder as well as
the company while enhancing, protecting as well as enhancing natural as well as the human
resources, which are required in the future. This involves management as well as
coordination of the environment, financial and social demands as well as concerns for
ensuring the responsible, ethical as well as ongoing success. In the world of corporate, it is
sometimes refers as triple bottom line. The sustainable business organizations generally
participates in the green practices or the environmentally friendly practices for making
certain that all of the products, processes and the manufacturing activities helps in addressing
the current concerns of the environment with still retaining the profit. The companies
recognize the importance for protecting environment and strive for minimizing the impact of
environment of the work practices that is carried out by the company. Hence, under this
assignment, six research papers will be reviewed and discussion will be done on the Rio
Tinto sustainable development report.
Discussion
Part 1
Articles Review
Article 1
Introduction
The article by Erica Schoenberger, says that the technology is advancing in such way
that it promises for the considerable improvements in mine waste management. However, this
will not happen in absence of the significant political changes. The author concludes that the

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problem of the tailings storage facilitates at any of the specific mine is the technically
challenging one.
Discussion
This particular problem of storage of tailings facilitates in social and political
environment. The author also states that the ability of the social scientists as well as the
policy analysts’ for focusing light on complex issues of social and environment surroundings
mining will be enhanced if people learn more about engineering. The mining has the normal
feature of political problem. It helps in giving the companies with something concrete for
offering if someone is talking about social license in which they are operating (Schoenberger,
2016).
Conclusion
Hence, the issues of environment has to be addressed in original feasibility as well as
studies of design of any of the project of mining rather than the just added on to the design
concerned with the economic. This is true particularly in respect of the management of
wastes.
Article 2
Introduction
The article by Craig, Michaela John & Tobin, examines the social as well as
environmental disclosures by the company BHP Ltd. in the response to the specific social
expectations that changes across the time. The author has founded that managers discloses the
information for legitimize their place of organizations within the society.
Discussion

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The evidence has been provided that is consistent with the view that greater attention
of media stimulates the greater disclosures of corporate. There is linkage between
legitimizing disclosures to the survival of corporate. In the jurisdictions of Australia in which
there are requirements of limited regulatory for providing environmental and social
information, management appear for providing the information when they are coerced into
doing this (Deegan, Rankin & Tobin, 2002).
Conclusion
Hence, higher levels of the disclosures occur when the concerns of community are
aroused or alternatively specific regulation is introduced for eliminating the disclosures
discretion of management. Although, if there is successful corporate legitimizing activities
then perhaps the pressure of public for the government for introducing the disclosure
legislation would be low and the managers would be retaining the control of their practices
of social as well as the environmental reporting.
Article 3
Introduction
The opportunities exist for the companies for improving their standards of reporting
by specifying clearly the type of energy that is pertaining to the consumptions, by the on-site
process of individual that is also necessary for gaining the more understanding of industry.
Discussion
About fifty percent of the companies in mining of 100 listed companies of Australian
Stock Exchange are reported on the materials, water and energy, as the indicators of the
sustainability accounting reports. The companies in the industry of mining are now getting
more transparent in releasing of the information relating to their interactions with

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environment as well as following different standards and protocols (Northey, Haque & Mudd,
2013).
Conclusion
Hence, the quality of the reporting of CHG emissions can be improved by stating the
used factors of emissions as well as boundaries of analysis. The author emphasized on the
long-term consistency in the reporting is necessary for accurately evaluating the industry state
of industry and assessing the key relationships and trends.
Article 4
Introduction
The article by Karen, states that guidelines should be used as the normative standard
and it is useful in the disasters that are linked to the abroad operations of the company. They
contribute towards enhancing observance that is especially of the rights of human as well as
environmental standards by the companies that operates across globe.
Discussion
There is growing consensus regarding disaster as inherently the social phenomenon.
The tradition of the hazards disaster considers that the disasters as the extreme events that
arises when the hazards agents intersects with the social system. In this respect, legal
initiatives aims for finding the ways for improving the record of businesses on the social
issues by focusing on the developments that arises in human rights sectors (da Costa, 2017).
Conclusion
Hence, the author has stated that there should be linkage of social behavior with the
essence of the disaster. Moreover, MNC should be able to avoid adverse impact of their

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activities as well as those of their partners of the business by following the guidelines as well
as engaging with NCP procedures.
Article 5
Introduction
The article by Kathyayini Kathy Rao, states that there is significant positive
relationship that exist between the extent of the environmental reporting as well as the
proportions of the independent and the female director on the board.
Discussion
The author does not supports the negative relationship between extent of the
environmental reporting and the institutional investors and the size of board rather it shows
positive relationship. The companies that include the commitment to the environment in the
mission as well as strategies have to consider the impact of the board composition and
structure, as both shows that it has significant effect on the amount of disclosed
environmental information by the companies (Kathy Rao, Tilt & Lester, 2012).
Conclusion
The result of the author shows that there is positive relationship that between the
institutional investors as well as environmental reporting. It helps in indicating the need for
the further measures for obtaining more accurate data on the shares percentage, which is held
by every institutional investor.
Article 6
Introduction
The article by Craig Deegan, states that the community of the business overwhelming
favors the approach of anti-regulation in which the organizations should be left with the

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flexibility for determining their social responsibilities, the associated accountabilities as well
as enlightened self-interests has to be retained as the guiding mechanism for the initiatives of
the social responsibility. The manager of the business organizations perceives the corporate
social responsibilities are expected for being linked to the way the shareholders are defined.
Discussion
The government has embraced the perspective of free market that is promoted by the
community of the business and they have decided against national legislation introduction
that is pertaining to the social responsibilities of corporate (Deegan & Shelly, 2014).
Conclusion
Hence, the firms who are opposed passionately to the legislation, they might continue
on an average basis for producing the products, which are environmentally damaging to the
extent that the market and the public demand those.
Part B
Sustainable Development Report of Rio Tinto
Rio Tinto is considered as one of the leading group of mining, which focuses on
finding, followed by mining and lastly processing the mineral resources of the earth. It is the
Anglo-Australian multinational company and largest mining and metals corporations around
the world. The company has developed some of largest as well as best quality mines and the
operations, and the people who are working in the organizations all around 35 countries
across the six continents (Kerr, Rouse & de Villiers, 2015). Rio Tinto prepares the
sustainable report for communicating the performance of the highlights of the sustainable
development as well as the case studies all through the website. This report is prepared
according to the GRI sustainable reporting standards, ICMM sustainable development
framework and GRI Mining and Metals sector supplements (Riotinto.com. 2019). The

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company provides good progress against some of the targets of sustainability performance,
glimpse of which is as follows:
 People: The people of the company are most important asset for the business of Rio
Tinto. The company provides safe, healthy as well as engaged workforce for
sustaining and expanding their operations for accelerating the innovative technology
and contributing positively towards partnership with the local community and the
other stakeholders. Moreover, company attracts, develops as well as retains the
talented and the enraged employees globally by investing in their people all through
their careers and offering diverse as well as inclusive prospects of employment and
opportunities of development, which are supported by the competitive remunerations
and the linked benefits to the performance (Hughen, Lulseged & Upton, 2014).
 Community Relationships: The approach of the company towards communities as
well as social performances is for securing and maintaining lasting relationship with
the communities who are affected by the activities and operations. The company uses
local knowledge for engaging with the communities as well as developing the
programmes, which reflects the priorities that is agreed mutually. The standard of
communities and social performance as well as the frameworks helps in enabling for
identifying and managing the social risks and therefore, building the relationships,
which secures community in the operations (Hahn & Lülfs, 2014).
 Protecting environment: The stewardship of environment is essential for the
relationships with the host regulators, communities and the others. In the planning as
well as operating the assets, company seeks for minimizing and remediating the
impacts of environment on the activity. They work with the host communities as well
as regulators for managing and monitoring these for complying with the relevant
regulators (Herremans, Nazari & Mahmoudian, 2016). The company works according

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to the Rio Tinto management system and Group as well as specific environmental
standards and processes of business. It also participates with the review of industry
regarding issues such as management of tailings and water stewardship. For example,
across the company, almost 68 percent of all the uses of electricity are used from the
renewable such as hydro, solar and wind. The company understands the business risks
under different scenario of climate and makes sure that the company’s facilities are
resilient to the variations of the climate as well as weather extremes (Dissanayake,
Tilt & Xydias-Lobo, 2016).
 Governance Integrity: The Company is committed towards doing the business with
highest level of accountability, integrity and transparency and with the partners of the
business who shares the company’s values. The company adopts the approaches for
preventing as well as resolving the specific and the systematic incidents by seeking
constantly ways for improving. In order to help manage risks and the expectations, it
becomes important for having good governance as well as system of integrity in place
(James, 2014).
 Value Chain: The company is committed towards responsible practice of the
business in the own operations as well as throughout of the value chain. The company
takes responsibility of mining seriously and seeking for achieving high standards of
industry and expects this of company’s value chain partners as well. They are
committed for delivering lasting benefits by sharing the value that has been created by
local investments, procurements, opportunities, taxes and employment (Bonilla-
Priego, Font & del Rosario Pacheco-Olivares, 2014).
 Sustainability Fundamentals: The Company sets out targets and goals, which is
communicated all across the company for improving the sustainability performance
and stretching the thinking as what is acceptable and possible. The company also

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engages with their stakeholders as engagement with them offers the opportunities for
creating the values for the society and the shareholders (Ioannou & Serafeim, 2017).
Moreover, they also Rio Tinto also participates in number of the relevant national,
regional as well as global organizations and the initiatives for informing the standards
of sustainability, approaches of management and improving the performance. Their
performance is also recognized and assessed by the external initiatives and
organizations as well as participating in the programmes of industry accreditation for
some of their products (del Mar Alonso‐Almeida, Llach & Marimon, 2014).
Conclusion
Hence, it is concluded from the analysis that the work practices that is
environmentally sustainable helps in reducing the harm on environment as well as reduces
the wastage of the resources. It is analyzed that the sustainability of the business is very
essential for the long-term prosperity of the global organizations. The principle of the
sustainability helps in serving for maximizing their opportunities and for minimizing the
negative impact of their core operations on the environment, economies and communities,
where they operate. Moreover, it has been analyzed that Rio Tinto are committed towards
operating the business responsibly that is with the respect to the safety and health of the
people, communities as well as risks and responsibilities of the business globally and locally.
Lastly, Rio Tinto aligns the sustainability reporting with the Global reporting initiatives
sustainability reporting standards.

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Reference
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da Costa, K. (2017). Corporate accountability in the Samarco chemical sludge
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Deegan, C., Rankin, M., & Tobin, J. (2002). An examination of the corporate social and
environmental disclosures of BHP from 1983-1997: A test of legitimacy
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