Why should you implement ISO 14001 in your organization?

The ISO 14001 standard provides a framework for an effective Environmental Management System (EMS). It applies to most industries regardless of their size, nature, and geographical location. As ISO 14001 is an internationally accredited Standard, an EMS can be audited by accredited certification bodies around the world. The ISO 14001 standard defines the requirements of the organization. The International Organisation for Standardisation provided in this standard helpful guidance fors the implementation of an effective environmental management system. This requires that the policies and procedures of the EMS are clearly defined.

What is a Environmental Management System (EMS)?

The environmental management system (EMS) mainly focuses on the resources and meeting the commitments to environmental protection. an EMS helps in increasing the trust of the customers and stakeholders. Management needs to promote sustainable development inside their organization.

The key elements of Environmental Management System that will be audited for the ISO 14001 Certification?

Auditors will look at how following core elements of your Environment Management System have been implemented:

  • Environmental policy
  • Planning
  • Implementation
  • Checking and corrective action
  • Management review
  • Continuous improvement

It is important for the audit team to understand, whether you are actively using your EMS and making an effort to continuosly improve it. Usually an ISO 14001 audit should not only look at your EMS documentation but also do an onsite inspection to make sure the policies described in your documentation are actually part of your daily operations.

Why is Environment Management System - ISO 14001 Important?

According to ISO 14001:2015 it is important to protect the Environment and the wellbeing of local communities. Also the taxonomy of ESG recognizes that an ISO 14001 certified EMS reduces the negative Impact of organizations and increases the sustainability indicators. This eventually leads to a higher ESG Score.

The key reasons for introducing an Environment Management System are:

  • It exhibits the commitment to protecting the environment.
  • It can provide a competitive edge in procuring green tenders.
  • An ISO 14001 Certificate demonstrates sustainable development.
  • It helps minimize wastage and use resources efficiently.
  • It respects social, economic, and environmental aspects.
  • It helps reduce costs by applying the detect and prevent approach.
  • It proves to customers and businesses the sustainable leadership.

According to the Sustainable Business Academy (SBA) and Vistula University (Warsaw Poland), corporates and Startups have to be proactive in addressing the demands of the EU taxonomy on sustainablity. They see the Need for the executive Level of an Organisation the paramount opportunity to excell the Long termperformance of their organizations. The big challanges happen in the minds of the work force in those organizations, which is why it is so important that Management Shows ist commitment to enforcing the policies and procedures in accordance with ISO 14001.

Legal requirements of ISO 14001 Certifications

According to the ISO 14001 standard, the objective is to provide the critical requirements to enforce an effective Environmental Management System. You need to keep in mind, that ISO 14001 is not a technical Standard. It can not replace any legal regulations in your particular jurisdiction.

These requirements are divided into 10 sections (Section 1 to Section 10) as followed:

  • Section 1 to Section 6 is in the Plan stage
  • Section 7 and Section 8 are in the Do stage.
  • Section 9 is in the Check stage.
  • Section 10 is in the Act stage.

If you want to understand the Concept of the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) Approach, please read our article on this matter or sign up for our fast track ISO 14001 Awareness Trainings.

Important Sections of an EMS

Section 1: the Scope of the Environmental management System must be clearly defined. The environmental policies should address the stated scope. The key objective is to improve the industry’s environmental performance.

Section 2: This part is dominated by normative references.

Section 3: This section explains all the terms and definitions related to following 4 categories:

  • Organization and leadership
  • Planning
  • Support and Operation
  • Performance Evaluation and Improvement

Section 4: It is vital to identify all the factors that affect the industry and understanding the requirements of the business. The size and nature of the organization has an influence on a variety of necessary efforts. Internal and external factors affecting the industry mit be stated. Taking these factors into consideration, allows the organization to enforce best practices for an effective environmental management system.

Section 5: The roles and responsibilities within the organization for an adequate environmental management system must be clearly defined and assigned. The top-level management has a vital role in executing and improving the EMS.

Section 6: One must examine any risk and opportunity that can impact the industry. This section lays out strategies to mitigate the risk and utilize opportunities. It reviews the interaction with the environment. Legal obligations are taken into consideration so to establish an effective Environmental management system.

Section 7: An effective Environmental system has business specific needs and requirements. They must be addressed in order to ensure the management of the EMS is sustainable. The flow of information, documentation, and policies has to make sure all the employees are aware of the objectives set by their organization.

Section 8: The organization must formulate policies to meet the operational requirement for environmental control and deal with a potential emergency.

Section 9: The organization’s environmental management system needs to be adequate and efficient. Current practices sould be monitored in order to identify the areas for advancement.

Section 10: Organizations need to commit to enhancing required process areas to establish an environmental management system.

Benefits of ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Certification

Here are the prime benefits of ISO 14001 standards:

– It is a hallmark of quality and safety. It ensures that the products are safe and healthy to consume.

– It is a globally recognized certification and applies to most industries irrespective of their size, nature, and geographical location.

-It follows the principle of clean and green progress as it gives equal importance to nature. It promotes sustainable development and also contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goals.

-It demonstrates the organization’s commitment to the environment and shows the organization is serious and responsible.

-It improves the impression of the organization amongst its customers and other businesses. ISO 14001 environment management system ensures the quality of the products and services and expands the organization’s customer base.

-It is a cost-effective standard as it reduces the cases of environmental incidents and protects the company from paying fines and compensations. It also promotes clean and green energy, which again saves the extra cost of production.

-Getting ISO 14001 certified ensures that the organization complies with all the legal regulations.

-It demonstrates that the organization is concerned about the environment and builds trust in the customers.

-ISO environmental certification helps to provide a competitive advantage to the organization as it displays that you have an active commitment to the environment.

-It reduces the amount of waste generated by the industries as one of the requirements of ISO 14001 is that the organization needs to demonstrate that it complies and works to achieve the environmental objectives.

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