Analysis

Businesses today are involved in a variety of practices aimed at preventing or reducing environmental degradation generated from their production activity. During the 1990s, the environmental regulation context changed. Increasingly, governments have relied on voluntary initiatives undertaken by businesses to reduce pollutants and waste, as opposed to regulations. However, at the same time, the federal authorities have undertaken to revise the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), in order to increase federal power for environmental regulation but with strong emphasis put on promoting pollution prevention. Consequently, businesses today are looking at alternative ways to limit impacts from their operations on the environment.

Environmental Management and Technologies in the Business Sector presents a profile of business demand for environmental processes and technologies, pollution prevention methods and environmental practices, such as environmental management systems and voluntary actions. What types of treatment processes are the most popular ones for reducing gas emissions, liquid, solid and hazardous waste, noise, radiation and vibration, for saving energy or for site reclamation? What is the market for environmental processes and technologies? What pollution prevention methods are used more frequently? What additional environmental practices have businesses adopted (for instance, are voluntary programs more popular than eco-labelling?)?

This paper is based on results from the Survey of Environmental Protection Expenditures. For the first time, the survey asked detailed questions on the type of environmental process or technology used and the adoption of environmental practices. The paper is a complement to both 1996-1997 and 1998 Environmental Protection Expenditures in the Business Sector reports (Catalogue no. 16F0006XIE).

This paper discusses in detail issues dealing with the technical aspects of designing and conducting surveys. It is intended for an audience of survey methodologists.

This paper proposes a method for short-term estimation of labour input indicators using administrative data from the Social Security Database (SSD). The rationale for developing this methodology originated from the need for national statistical offices to meet the standard quality criteria in the Regulation no. 1165/98 of the European Community concerning short-term business statistics. Information requested in the Regulation involves such a detailed disaggregation that it would be impossible to meet all the requirements through direct data collection. Administrative data, because of their timeliness and detailed coverage, represent a valuable source for obtaining estimates of business population aggregates that meet such quality requirements.

The latest annual results for the US/Canada purchasing power parities (PPPs) and real expenditures per head in the US compared with Canada are published in this paper. The data were developed for the period 1992 to 2001, using the latest US and Canada expenditure data from the National Accounts and price comparisons for 1999. The paper contains summaries of differences between the results of the multilateral (OECD) study and the Statistics Canada bilateral study. Some differences in classifications have been incorporated, as well as normal national Accounts revisions. Ten tables are presented in an Appendix for 21 categories of expenditure for the GDP.

The networked economy involves economic and social actors and the links that tie them together. The information and communication technologies that provide the links are changing, as are the electronic products that they deliver. This requires the statistical office to introduce new surveys and to develop and use relevant industrial and product classifications. As technology changes, so does the way of doing business and trade in a global economy, with implications for statistics on labour, balance of payments and prices, and, more generally for the whole System of National Accounts. While the networked economy is the way of the future, there are people and businesses that cannot participate fully and there is a need for statistical information about them. This paper looks at these issues, at the statistics that are being developed, and at some of the gaps that are arising.

The latest annual results for the US/Canada purchasing power parities (PPPs) and real expenditures per head in the US compared with Canada are published in this paper. The data were developed for the period 1992 to 2001, using the latest US and Canada expenditure data from the National Accounts and price comparisons for 1999. The paper contains summaries of differences between the results of the multilateral (OECD) study and the Statistics Canada bilateral study. Some differences in classifications have been incorporated, as well as normal national Accounts revisions. Ten tables are presented in an Appendix for 21 categories of expenditure for the GDP.

This paper discusses in detail issues dealing with the technical aspects of designing and conducting surveys. It is intended for an audience of survey methodologists.

This paper proposes a method for short-term estimation of labour input indicators using administrative data from the Social Security Database (SSD). The rationale for developing this methodology originated from the need for national statistical offices to meet the standard quality criteria in the Regulation no. 1165/98 of the European Community concerning short-term business statistics. Information requested in the Regulation involves such a detailed disaggregation that it would be impossible to meet all the requirements through direct data collection. Administrative data, because of their timeliness and detailed coverage, represent a valuable source for obtaining estimates of business population aggregates that meet such quality requirements.

The networked economy involves economic and social actors and the links that tie them together. The information and communication technologies that provide the links are changing, as are the electronic products that they deliver. This requires the statistical office to introduce new surveys and to develop and use relevant industrial and product classifications. As technology changes, so does the way of doing business and trade in a global economy, with implications for statistics on labour, balance of payments and prices, and, more generally for the whole System of National Accounts. While the networked economy is the way of the future, there are people and businesses that cannot participate fully and there is a need for statistical information about them. This paper looks at these issues, at the statistics that are being developed, and at some of the gaps that are arising.

Businesses today are involved in a variety of practices aimed at preventing or reducing environmental degradation generated from their production activity. During the 1990s, the environmental regulation context changed. Increasingly, governments have relied on voluntary initiatives undertaken by businesses to reduce pollutants and waste, as opposed to regulations. However, at the same time, the federal authorities have undertaken to revise the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), in order to increase federal power for environmental regulation but with strong emphasis put on promoting pollution prevention. Consequently, businesses today are looking at alternative ways to limit impacts from their operations on the environment.

Environmental Management and Technologies in the Business Sector presents a profile of business demand for environmental processes and technologies, pollution prevention methods and environmental practices, such as environmental management systems and voluntary actions. What types of treatment processes are the most popular ones for reducing gas emissions, liquid, solid and hazardous waste, noise, radiation and vibration, for saving energy or for site reclamation? What is the market for environmental processes and technologies? What pollution prevention methods are used more frequently? What additional environmental practices have businesses adopted (for instance, are voluntary programs more popular than eco-labelling?)?

This paper is based on results from the Survey of Environmental Protection Expenditures. For the first time, the survey asked detailed questions on the type of environmental process or technology used and the adoption of environmental practices. The paper is a complement to both 1996-1997 and 1998 Environmental Protection Expenditures in the Business Sector reports (Catalogue no. 16F0006XIE).