A 4‐yr study of environmental management practices in industry reflected three approaches: (1) Crisis management, where the law is kept minimally, regulations are often resisted, and little is done until a crisis develops; (2) cost‐oriented management, where regulations are carried out as cheaply as possible, with mostly short‐term considerations taken into account; and (3) enlightened management, which looks to the long‐term good of the firm and to the spirit, as well as letter, of the law, so that long‐term environmental safety and corporate profits are maximized. A follow‐up check of 32 firms revealed that about 1/4 of the firms had improved the quality of their environmental management practices.