Increasingly, American businesses are focusing on sustainability and reducing their environmental impact, as 67% of Americans feel that large organizations and corporations aren’t doing enough for the environment.
As demand for sustainability increases, companies can build customer trust and show their commitment to the environment by using an Environmental Management System (EMS) certified to ISO 14001.
But what are environmental management systems and ISO 14001? How do they help organizations reduce waste, use fewer resources, switch to cleaner energy, and make a positive impact on the environment?
What’s The Purpose Of an Environmental Management System?
An Environmental Management System (EMS) is a structured plan that helps businesses manage their impact on the environment.
It aims to reduce environmental harm, boost eco-friendly performance, and promote sustainability.
An EMS provides a clear framework to help businesses identify, monitor, and reduce their environmental impact. It involves identifying how a company’s operations, products, and services affect the environment and creating strategies to lessen that impact. This might include actions like cutting down on waste, recycling, managing water use, or controlling emissions.
An EMS helps businesses operate more sustainably and responsibly, and stay compliant with environmental laws and regulations.
An EMS also promotes ongoing improvement by regularly checking and updating environmental goals and practices. This can help companies save money and work more efficiently. Using an EMS shows that a business cares about the environment, which can improve its image with customers and the community.
What Is ISO 14001?
ISO 14001 is the global standard for environmental management systems.
It is part of the ISO 14000 family of standards and provides a framework for helping organizations build and implement environmental management systems.
By achieving the certification, companies can consistently manage their environmental responsibilities, which can lead to being more efficient and having less impact on the environment. Getting certified in ISO 14001 shows that a business is serious about handling its environmental impact responsibly and following the law.
It also allows organizations to improve sustainability while ensuring compliance with relevant local, state, or federal laws and regulations. These operations can include waste management and disposal, energy consumption, and use of resources such as raw materials and packaging.
ISO 14001:2015 is the latest iteration of the ISO 14001 standard. As the name suggests, it was last updated in 2015.
Who Can Implement an ISO 14001 EMS?
An ISO 14001 EMS can benefit any business, regardless of its size or industry.
All organizations impact the environment directly through their operations or as part of a supply chain. From energy usage in factories and haulage to raw material use and waste generation, businesses should monitor and measure their impact and implement an environmental management system to control and improve results.
ISO 14001 can be an effective route for any organization looking to prioritize sustainability and proactively approach its environmental responsibilities.
An ISO 14001 EMS is also a valuable asset whether you’re just starting to become more eco-friendly or already have advanced initiatives in place.
The Benefits of Implementing an EMS
Implementing an ISO 14001 Environmental Management System (EMS) can help your business in many ways, not just by being better for the environment:
- Improved Regulatory Compliance—An ISO 14001 EMS helps businesses spot potential problems and ensure they follow environmental laws. This can help avoid fines, penalties, and legal issues.
- Less Waste and Lower Costs—An EMS promotes using resources efficiently, which reduces waste. This is good for the environment and can save a lot of money on waste management and disposal.
- Improved Environmental Performance—An ISO 14001 EMS helps businesses continuously improve their environmental practices, set and meet goals, manage their environmental impact, and reduce their carbon footprint.
- Better Reputation and Market Position—Having an ISO 14001 EMS can enhance a company’s image and brand. Showing a commitment to the environment can set a business apart from competitors, attract eco-friendly customers, and potentially increase market share.
- Culture of Continual Improvement—Through training and engagement, businesses can create a culture focused on continuous improvement in environmental impact. Increased awareness and employee involvement can lead to more effective sustainability practices.
By increasing your organization’s environmental responsibility with ISO 14001, you will improve your environmental impact and business performance.
Read our guide on recycling tips for business waste management.
ISO 14001 Requirements For Environmental Management Systems
To set up an effective Environmental Management System (EMS) that meets ISO 14001 standards, you’ll need to follow these steps:
Planning
Planning is a key feature of an effective EMS. It focuses on designing strategies and procedures that support its effective implementation and operation.
Start by analyzing how your business affects the environment. Look at both direct and indirect impacts. This means identifying which parts of your operations affect the environment, understanding their impact, and then setting new goals and realistic targets to manage these impacts.
Develop the EMS Framework
After planning, set up the main parts of your EMS. This includes defining its scope, creating an Environmental Policy, and setting objectives and targets. You’ll also need to assign roles and responsibilities to everyone involved and create procedures and documents to support the EMS.
Implementation and Operation
Organize and run the EMS to put it into action. This is an organization-wide effort that may require adjustments at every level.
It involves defining roles, providing necessary resources, offering training and awareness programmes, and establishing the controls and documentation needed to meet your goals.
Clarity on roles and responsibilities is central to successful implementation and operation. It helps a business understand who is responsible for different aspects of the management system.
An EMS is a critical monitoring and reporting tool. Its key feature is providing a centralized space for businesses to record, store, and access relevant documentation.
EMS operations can include:
- Auditing and Compliance—tools to record and capture evidence to support regulatory requirements.
- Incident Management—methods for capturing incidents so changes can be made to operations.
- Knowledgebase—access to information, policies, and procedures used by teams and sites about activities such as waste disposal.
- Performance—access to KPIs to provide insights and data on environmental measures and controls.
- Risk—risk audits and assessments to identify areas for improvement.
Checking and Corrective Action
It’s important to monitor and measure key operations and activities that could significantly affect the environment. This includes checking compliance with environmental laws, identifying any issues, taking corrective and preventive actions, and keeping clear and accessible records.
Management Review
Top management should regularly review the EMS to ensure it remains suitable, adequate, and effective as the business changes. These reviews should consider any changes in environmental impacts, legal obligations, risks and opportunities, and other relevant issues that could affect the EMS.
Continuous Improvement
Achieving ISO 14001 and implementing an EMS to review and actively maintain standards and requirements brings about continuous improvement.
This EMS identifies parts of an organization and its processes that can be improved. This can be based on recorded data, risk analysis, regular reviews, effective communication, and activities such as employee training.
For more detailed information, check out our complete guide to ISO 14001 requirements.
How Your Organization Can Become ISO 14001 Certified
To achieve ISO 14001 certification, organizations must complete several steps:
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Learn About ISO 14001—Start by understanding what the ISO 14001 standard requires. Depending on your organization’s size and complexity, you might need a team from different departments or just a few employees to handle the process.
You can buy the official ISO documentation from ISO.org.
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Prepare Relevant Documentation—Creating documentation is a key part of getting certified. You’ll need to produce documents that detail your Environmental Management System (EMS) and show that you comply with ISO 14001 standards.
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Train Your Staff—It’s important for everyone involved to be trained and understand the ISO 14001 requirements. Make sure your employees know what ISO 14001 involves and what their roles are in the EMS.
Discover our ISO 14001 training courses.
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Conduct a Pre-audit—Conduct an internal audit to identify any gaps or weaknesses in your EMS before the official certification audit. Consider developing an audit schedule and checklist to ensure you cover everything.
Download our free ISO 14001 checklist.
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Certification Audit—Schedule the certification audit with us. An independent auditor will review your EMS to confirm it meets ISO 14001 standards. Once everything checks out, your business will receive its ISO 14001 certification—congratulations!
How Amtivo Can Help
Achieving ISO 14001 certification for your EMS doesn’t have to be complex.
Amtivo’s ISO 14001 certification process is a cost-effective service completely tailored to your organization’s needs. We offer access to qualified, expert auditors who will be with you throughout every step of the certification journey.
Amtivo is an ANAB-accredited certification body for ISO certifications, with proven expertise to help guide your business towards successful ISO certifications.
We’ve helped thousands of organizations confidently move along the path to certification. Our award-winning service is built on confidence and trust, so you know you’re in safe hands.
Get started on your journey to ISO 14001 certification – get a quote today or contact our team to discuss your needs.
