ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management System

What is ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management System?

ISO 14001 Stands for Environmental Management System. It is the benchmark for an organization’s commitment to environmental protection. This standard is pivoted towards ‘Environment Management’ Providing direction to an organization to:

• Diminish harmful effects on the environment caused by business activities.
• Achieve progressive improvement of environmental performance.

The standard is commonly recognized as a ‘Generic Environmental Management System Standard’, applicable to all genres of businesses. Environmental responsibility is a globally sensitive subject. The public’s priority is safety, which the government regulates. Therefore, the company has to survive and thrive between the two elements without disturbing them.

What is ISO 14001 Certification?

ISO 14001 Certification was first Issued In 1998; with the primary objective of meeting market demands and providing businesses with a management system standard requiring top-level commitment and legal compliance, along with pollution prevention and continuous improvement that can be independently certified through accredited verification.

It sets out the criteria for an Environmental Management System and the requirements for its certifications. It maps out a framework a company or organization can follow to set up an effective Environmental Management System. It can be used by any organization regardless of its activity or sector.

• It is an International Standard for the requirements of an environmental management system.
• Produced by the International Organization for Standardization.
• Adopted by greater than 300,000 Companies globally.
• Used as the basis for third-party and accredited certification of the environmental management system.

What is an EMS (Environmental Management System)?

It is a part of an organization’s management system used to develop and implement its environmental policy and manage its environmental aspects.

• A demonstrable system to direct and control an organization regarding the environment.
• What does your company do to minimize the harmful effects on the environment caused by its activities?

Steps in Developing an EMS

• Identify environmental aspects and undertake risk assessments.
• Develop an environmental policy.
• Set environmental objectives.
• Establish environmental key performance indicators (KPIs).
• Plan and develop procedures and systems.
• Implement procedures and systems.
• Monitor Performance.
• Undertake Continual Improvement.

Environmental Policy

An Environmental Policy will establish

• A description of “why the company exists,” “what it does,” and “how it performs key activities.”
• A goal of where it aims to sit in comparison with others in the market.

An Environmental Policy Must

• Be specific to the organization.
• Commit to complying with specific legislation and industry guidelines/standards.
• Commit to continuous improvement.
• Commit to establishing and regularly reviewing environmental objectives and targets.

A Company Environmental Policy must be

• Truthful and non-misleading.
• Backed by the EMS.
• Written to the audience – Customers and stakeholders.

Environmental Objectives

Influencing factors for Environmental Objectives include:

• Legal and other requirements.
• Environmental Aspects.
• Views of Interested Parties (Stakeholders).
• Operational and Business Requirements.
• Financial Objectives and implications.
• Technology requirements and constraints.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• (e.g., number of people to be trained per month, zero non-compliance events, or water samples written x-y levels).
• Essential Aspects to be monitored that will help you to achieve your objectives.
• Measurements you identify show the performance of your system against your desired outcomes.
• KPIs enable a company to make educated/intelligent decisions about the direction of the company’s performance. (like setting an audible alarm in the car for when you exceed the speed limits).

Monitoring and Auditing

Monitoring is the performance assessment through gathering, analyzing, and interpreting data—E.g., monitoring water quality, dust emissions, noise levels, and waste generation.

Auditing is the systematic review of processes, procedures, and monitoring results to determine conformance levels against a predetermined set of criteria. Is your system working – meeting its intended outcome?

Monitoring and auditing track the processes towards an established set of objectives and enable intelligent decisions before they become critical. (Like flying a plane using the dials in the cockpit).

What are the Major New Changes in ISO 14001?

• Environmental Sustainability is the aim of EMS.
• Protecting the Environments.
• Strategic focus (Integration of EMS into Business).
• Context (Issues and Interested Parties).
• Risk-Based Thinking (Risks and Opportunities).
• Life Cycle Perspective.
• Leadership Promotion of EMS.
• Process Approach (Outcomes and Results).
• Documentation Flexibility (Computer Technology).

What are the Benefits of ISO 14001 Certification?

The ISO 14001 environmental management system delivers on many vital points that benefit the organization and the environment.

• Environmental Risk Management.
• Reducing costs by finding areas for reduction of energy usage.
• Improved Corporate Image.
• Showcasing corporate social responsibility.
• Commitment to the future.
• Internationally recognized &accepted.
• A formal accredited certificate gives confidence to customers and stakeholders.
• Easily compliant with existing management systems.
• Fulfilling legal & regulatory requirements.
• Reducing pollution and waste.
• Uniformity in audit methodology.
• Improve management of environmental impacts.
• Set targets to reduce use, water use, and waste in landfills.

Initiate and maintain procedures to improve efficiencies, including:

• Use a quality approach to drive continual improvement.
• Use of less evasive chemicals.
• Risk management approach to Environmental incidents.
• Work with contractors to ensure your expectations are driven through the supply chain.
• Preferred business level option.

• Define Key responsibilities of achieving the target.
• Promote a culture of environmental awareness among staff and contractors to encourage good adoption of the EMS and gain knowledge on improvement ideas.
• Monitor and measure environmental performance against key indicators.
• Regularly assess progress towards achieving the set objective.
• Ensure due diligence and ongoing consideration of legal and other environmental requirements.
• Driven by government policy and communicates good practices to industry and communities.
• Contribute to the referred employer status.
• Achieve cost savings.
• Show leadership nationally and internationally.
• Obtain a competitive advantage.
• Clients, customers, and regulators may require it.
• Build goodwill from customers, employees, and stakeholders.

What are the requirements of ISO 14001?

1. The Organization shall monitor, measure, analyze, and evaluate its environmental performance.
2. The Organization shall determine.
3. What needs to be monitored and measured?
4. The methods for monitoring, measurement, analysis, and evaluation, as applicable, to ensure valid results.
5. The criteria against which the Organization will evaluate its environmental performance and appropriate indicators.
6. When the monitoring and measuring shall be performed.
7. When the results from monitoring and measurement shall be analyzed and evaluated.
8. The Company shall ensure that calibrated or verified monitoring and measurement equipment is used and maintained as appropriate.
9. The Organization shall evaluate its environmental performance and the effectiveness of the environmental management system.
10. The Company shall communicate relevant environmental performance information internally and externally, as identified in its communication processes and as required by its compliance obligations.
11. The Organization shall retain appropriate documented information as evidence of the monitoring measurements, analysis, and evaluation results.

What are the Clauses of ISO 14001:2015?

1. Context of the Organization

• Determine the internal and external issues that are relevant to your organization’s purpose and ability to achieve intended outcomes.

Broad, high-level view of potential issues:

• Climate Change.
• Land Use and Biodiversity.
• Cultural or Social Issues.
• Financial or Technology.
• Company culture and strategy.

2. Leadership

2.1 Leadership & Commitment

• Commitment and leadership.

2.2 Environmental Policy

• Framework for setting environmental objectives.

2.3 Organizational Roles, Responsibilities, and Authorities

• Human Resources.

3. Planning

3.1 Actions to address risks and opportunities

• Plan how to meet the requirements and issues.

3.2 Environmental objectives and planning to achieve them

• Plan of Actions.

4. Support

• Resources.
• Competence.
• Awareness.
• Communication.
• Documented Information.

5. Operation

5.1 Operational Planning & Control

• Establish EMS Processes.

5.2 Emergency preparedness and response

• When the sewage hits the windmill, who cleans the sheep?

6. Performance Evaluation

6.1 Monitoring, Measurement, Analysis, and Evaluation

• Including regulatory compliance requirements.

6.2 Internal Audit

• Planned Intervals.

6.3 Management Review

• Suitability, Adequacy, and Effectiveness.

7. Improvement

7.1 General

• Opportunities for Improvement of the EMS.

7.2 Nonconformity and Corrective Action

• Corrective Action for prevention of repeats.

7.3 Continual Improvement

• Suitability, adequacy, and effectiveness of the EMS.

Who Can Avail ISO 14001 Certification?

ISO 14001 Certification applies to all kinds of businesses, such as

• Manufacturing Sector.
• Corporate Sector.
• Service Sector.
• Trading Industry.
• Manufacturing Units.
• Educational Institutes.
• Hospital.
• Retail Outlets.
• Other Organization / Any Size / Any Location /Any Business.

Plan – Do – Check – Act

Plan- Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver the organization’s environmental policy results.

Do- Implement the processes and manage the environmental aspects.

Check- Monitor and measure processes against the environmental policy, Objectives, Targets, legal and other requirements, Conduct Audits, and report the results.

Act- Review EMS and take action to improve the performance of the environmental management system continually.

 What is ISO 14001 Certification Cost?

It is impossible to determine the exact certification cost without a detailed assessment. Price also depends on many factors:

• Size of organization.
• Structure of operations.
• Maturity and complexity of existing systems.

Generally, this certification cost in Pakistan is not much compared to the improved efficiency in process and brand equity benefits it offers organizations.

Conclusion

• It can be applied to any type of organization.
• It helps in maintaining an efficient quality system in an organization.
• It creates confidence in customers in the quality of products supplied.
• It acts as a competitive barrier.

In addition, to this certification audit TUV Austria also offers a range of complimentary services:

• ISO Certifications
• ISO 9001 – Quality Management System
• ISO 45001 – Occupational Health & Safety Management System
• ISO 50001 – Energy Management System
• ISO 27001 – Information Security Management System
• ISO 20000 – IT Service Management System
• ISO 22000 – Food Safety Management System
• FSSC 22000 – Food Safety System Certification
• HACCP – Food Safety Management System
• ISO 21001 – Educational Organizations Management System
• ISO 29990 – Learning Services Management System
• ISO 20121 – Sustainability Event Management System
• ISO 22301 – Business Continuity Management System
• ISO 37001 – Anti-Bribery Management System
• ISO 28000 – Supply Chain Security Management System
• ISO 13485 – Quality Management Systems for Medical Devices
• ISO 39001 – Road Traffic Safety Management System
• ISO 31000 – Risk Management – Guidelines
• ISO 22716 – Good Manufacturing Practices for Cosmetics
• ISO 3834 – Quality Requirements for Fusion Welding of Metallic Materials
• Halal Certification
• “Covid-Shield” Certification
• GlobalG.A.P. Certification
• IFS Certification Services

FAQ’s

What are ISO 14001 Standards?

• The year 1996 witnessed the birth of the ISO 14000 series of standards for environmental management systems.
• The14001 Environmental Management Systems – Specification for guidance for use was published, along with the interpretative standard, 14004, in September 1996.
• The standards were revised and updated in 2004; the latest edition came in 2015.
• The standard focuses on the core elements of a structured management system.

What are the Principles of an Environmental Management System?

These are the basic principles of EMS

• Polluter Pay.
• User Pay.
• Precautionary.
• Effectiveness & Efficiency.
• Responsibility.
• Participation.
• Proportionality.

What are the Elements of ISO 14001?

• General Requirements.
• Environmental Policy.
• Planning.
• Implementation & Operation.
• Checking & Corrective Action.
• Management Review.

Why Environmental Standards & Audits Emerged?

• Today, Organizations are increasingly required to control the harmful impact of their activities on the environment.
• It is achieved against the backdrop of increasingly stringent legislation and other policies and regulation for Environmental Protection.
• The concept of environmental auditing came into existence in the United States during the 1970s and 1980s.
• The audits became more effective by developing more formal standards focusing on the Environmental Management System, for Example – ISO 14001.

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