EMS Flashcards
Banerjee, 2001, found:
Many firms prefer voluntary environmental management standards like ISO 14000 as they provide a checklist of actions and processes required to develop an environmental management system. Such standards provide both guidelines and legitimacy.
Three standards of environmental management:
- ISO 14001 – 346,189 ISO 14001 certified organisations.
- ISO 50001 – 20,216 certified companies
- EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) – 3,547 EMAS-registered organisations
How do firms free ride certifications?
Use these logos trying to put across that the PRODUCT is in compliance but, fact, it’s the MANAGEMENT.
Free-riders use logo but don’t adopt it in their management.
Logo can be used for up to three years, after this they are forced to use same auditor or switch to another. £1500 a day and up to several thousand pounds for logo.
Main characteristics of Environmental Management Standards
- Process rather than performance standards.
- Subject to regular audits during which the management system and its components are thoroughly examined and compared with the standard’s requirements by external auditors.
- Applicable to all organisations irrespective of size or industry.
- These standards promote a voluntary approach to environmental protection, since their adoption is not mandatory and there is no central authority to impose them, monitor their execution or sanction violations.
- Outcome of a wide consultation process, taking into account the interests of both internal and external stakeholders. Different stakeholders are involved in this to express their views, so the final outcome addresses all concerns.
- Based on the concept of continuous improvement (also known as the Plan, Do, Check and Act Cycle).
What is an Environmental Management System (EMS)?
A structured framework of practices and procedures that enables an organisation to execute its operations in a consistent and sustained manner.
Components of EMS?
- Policy (Formal statement of values and commitments)
- Planning
- Implementation and Operation
- Monitoring, Checking and Corrective Action
- Management Review
Step 1: Policy statement
A policy statement will outline the strategic values that are most important to the company and provide the foundation upon which the management system is built.
- Documented, communicated and available – both internally and externally
- Consider avoiding vague statements
- Usually publicly available
- Used frequently for PR purposes.
- It’s a means of communicating an organisations values and standards.
Step 2: Planning
Planning is critical and should be both holistic and practical:
- Identify the elements of the organisation’s activities, products and services that intersect with the company’s policy
- Establish a process to identify legal and other requirements, and to maintain compliance
- Set goals to help the company achieve and continue to improve upon the management system
Step 3: Implementation & Operation
Identify the requirements necessary to execute against the policy and plans:
- Defined roles and responsibilities
- Identify proper skills, education and/or experience
Environmental Procedures – ISO14001
- Environmental Communication
- Emergency Preparedness and Response
- Environmental Impact Assessment
- Waste Management (Toxic/ Non Toxic- Solid/ Liquid)
- Air Pollution Management
- Noise Control
- Important: The nature and extend of the above described documentation depends on the size and complexity of organization and can be either in paper or in electronic form so that documents are easily accessible and understood.
Step 4: Checking
Establish a process to monitor performance, legal compliance and the execution of management system requirements.
- Employees are aware of the policy statement and understand how what they do in their job might impact it e..g Fujitsu trained more than 1,100 staff so that participation and understanding of our obligations and impacts are known and understood by our staff.
- Audit results will provide a good sense of the status of the management system and should be periodically reviewed with top management
- They are required to internally audit how well the organisation is doing, then they are audited externally but third-parties that can be objective to how well they are complying to the standards.
Step 5: Reviewing
Periodic review with top management. Some elements of this review should include:
- Status of goals and targets
- Status of compliance with legal and other applicable requirements
- Identification of any changes to business operations
- Discussion regarding opportunities for improvement
- Any resulting action that management identifies as a need for changes to the management system, goals, other opportunities for improvement or is there a need to change the policy statement?
Continual improvement – Goal setting
- Identify the goal and respective target
- Define the means – how you will accomplish this goal
- Provide a time frame – by when
- Designate the person responsible to execute or oversee execution
- Periodically check progress
Continual improvement example
- Reduce energy use by 20% (goal)
- Introduce an energy saving technology (means)
- By 2020 (when)
- Environmental manager (person)
- Indicators e.g. energy consumption this year/ previous year (check progress)
EMS keys to Success
- Top management commitment and support is critical
- Recognise that the management system is dynamic and should be seamlessly incorporated into everyday operations
- The management system should be robust enough to address the values of the company yet flexible enough to accommodate change rapidly and efficiently (tailor made system)
- They will lose right to use logo if they don’t make the standards required and violate. But there are no specific sanctions.
