# Presentation: 891775

## A Brief Overview of Environmental Management Systems (EMS) and ISO 14001

- Senior Management Discussion

## Environmental Issues Facing Government

- Impacts from site operations
- Policy implications
- Compliance concerns
- Budgetary pressures (enhanced efficiency)
- Public perception

## What are some of the drivers for government to adopt EMS principles?

- The need to improve environmental performance because of:
- Executive Order 13148
- Obligation of Environmental Stewardship
- Public expectations
- The “business side” of government
- Regulatory compliance issues

## What are some of the roadblocks for government to adopt EMS principles?

- Changing priorities over time
- Political and other non-organizational pressures
- Frequent changes in leadership and their goals
- Budgets and allocations are no typical of private sector
- Finding relevant metrics (administrative vs. environmental condition or cost)
- Finding the best element to motivate employees

## Keep in mind...

- The EMS and related measurement tools are just that- tools.  Alone, they will not guarantee success.
- The organization must _**use**_ the tools, not just _**have**_ them.
- A useful EMS is “alive”; constantly measuring performance, making adjustments, and looking for continual improvement opportunities

## Benefits of Improved Environmental Performance

- Improves the environmental condition
- Responds to public scrutiny trends
- Minimizes accidents and problems
- Reduces redundant paperwork
- Cost savings
- Facilitates compliance

## Examples of Metrics to Measure Benefits

- Improves the environmental condition (*environmental indicators*)
- Responds to public scrutiny trends (*complaints, communications*)
- Minimizes accidents and problems (*incidents, losses*)
- Reduces redundant paperwork (*time spent per task*)
- Cost savings (*dollars per unit activity*)
- Facilitates compliance (*number of non-compliances, penalty costs*)

## What is an Environmental Management System?

- It is the tool used by an organization to manage the:
- Organization Structure
- Planning Activities
- Responsibilities
- Practices, Procedures, Processes
- Resources
- 	for developing, implementing, maintaining, reviewing, and correcting/improving the approach to addressing **environmental issues**.
- 	It is the structured approach that incorporates environmental considerations into day-to-day operations throughout the organization, and is designed to promote **continual improvement**.

## WHAT IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM? ISO 14001 Definition

- “The part of the overall management system that includes organizational structure, planning activities, responsibilities, practices, procedures, processes and resources for developing, implementing, achieving, reviewing and maintaining the environmental policy.”
- Key words:	system
- 		implementing
- 		environmental policy (all commitments!)
- Remember!	Plan, Do, Check, Act

## ISO 14001

- ISO 14000 (specifically ISO 14001) describes one format/structure for the planning, implementation and checking of an EMS.
- There are other possible scenarios/options.
- ISO 14000 is important for, among other reasons, being the one option globally developed and understood.
- ISO 14000 actually composes a series of standards, developed by the International Organization for Standardization, and are voluntary, market-driven standards.

## A Viable EMS

- To succeed an EMS should be:
- In harmony with mission focus;
- Cost effective;
- Flexible;
- Transparent;
- Useful to the “practitioner”;
- Focused on continual improvement.

**Notes:**
Whatever EMS model is used, the key to implementing a successful EMS is to integrate it into your existing management structure.  Every company’s EMS will be different, because each company’s management structure is unique.
  If the EMS doesn’t fit with the company management and structure--it isn’t a viable EMS

## General Principles

- An EMS uses the Plan-Do-Check-Act Management Model
- An EMS serves the organization and its mission, not the reverse
- EMS is a process, not an event
- An EMS is the people & their actions, not the words & aspirations
- Improvement rests on changing attitudes & behaviors
- “Want to, not have to”
- Start at the top, and the bottom and  implement throughout

**Notes:**
These are some general principles of an EMS.  Again, an EMS should be integrated into a company’s current management system and help accomplish the mission.
The greatest benefit of implementing an EMS is the change in behavior in attitudes about the environment.  No matter how good the environmental manager of the facility is they can’t do as good of a job as everyone taking responsibility.  Most auditors find that it isn’t that people ignore environmental requirements, it is that they are ignorant of their impact on the environment.  An EMS is a systematic way to ensure everyone knows about the environmental aspects of their job.
An EMS requires that you look at your processes.  Often when this happens people find ways to make the process more efficient.

## The Three C’s of an Effective EMS

- _Conformance_
- 	**Meets the requirements**
**	****(implements the “shalls”)**
- _Consistency_
- 	**Various elements inter-related**
**	****(I.e., significant aspects reflected in emergency planning, etc.)**
- _Continual Improvement_
- 	**Mechanisms in place to improve, cultural change, management commitment**
**	****(including fixing non-conformances **_**and**_** improving performance)**

## Major Components of an EMS

**Environmental**
**Policy**

**Continual Improvement**

**Planning**

**Implementation &**
**Control**

**Checking & Corrective Action**

**Management**
**Review**

**Notes:**
This is a continual improvement loop of the EMS

## Environmental Management Systems  

**Policy (What the organization is committed to doing)**
**Planning (figuring out what we want to do and why, identifying the “drivers”)**
**	****-****	****Aspects (The company’s environmental character)**
**	****-****	****Legal and Other Requirements (Knowing what laws and regulations apply)**
**	****-****	****Objectives and Targets (Improvement goals)**
**	****-****	****Environmental Management Programs (specific “how to” for objectives)**
**Implementation/Operation**
**	****-****	****Structure and Responsibility (Deploying accountability throughout the ****	****organization)**
**	****-****	****Training Awareness and Competence (Deploying knowledge throughout the   ****	****organization)**
**	****-****	****Communication (getting the word out internally and externally)**
**	****-****	****EMS Documentation (Providing direction and guidance on what to do)**
**	****-****	****Document Control (Making sure documents in use are current and accurate)**
**	****-****	****Operational Control (Ongoing control of significant aspects)**
**	****-****	****Emergency Planning and Response (Management and planning for unexpected ****	****occurrences)**
**	**

**Checking/Corrective Action**
**	****-****	****Monitoring and Measurement (Ongoing evaluation of the ****	****system, including legal compliance)**
**	****-****	****Conformances, Corrective and Preventive Action (Ongoing ****	****fixes to the system)**
**	****-****	****Records (Making a record to verify we did what we intended ****	****to do)**
**	****-****	****EMS Audits (Periodic spot checks of system itself)**
**Management Review (Top management support to maintain the EMS, fix problems, and ensure continual improvement)**

## Environmental Aspects and Impacts

- ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS
*Elements of an organization’s activities, products or services which can interact with the environment.*  Examples include discharges, resource consumption, energy usage, ecosystem alterations, etc.
- ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
*Any change to the environment, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partly resulting from an organization’s activities, products, or services.*
- (A significant aspect is one that has or can have a significant impact on the environment.  The organization selects the criteria for significance.)

## Role of Aspects in the EMS

- Significant aspects drive the EMS
- EMS is designed to identify, control, manage, and improve upon the significant aspects
- Compliance with Legal and Other Requirements is a part of the system and does relate to the aspects
- Elements such as operational control (procedures and work instructions), training, monitoring and measurement, emergency planning, and setting objectives all depend on significant aspects.

## Where Does Compliance Fit in EMS and ISO 14001?

- 	There is “Compliance Management System” embedded within the broader “Environmental  Management System”
- First- the theme of compliance is seen throughout the plan-do-check-act elements
- Second, there are specific compliance-related requirements in an EMS (such as periodic compliance audits)

## Objectives, Targets, EMPs

- Objectives define what the organization will do to address and improve upon relative to the policy, aspects, and requirements
- Targets are the specific measureables to drive the objectives
- EMPs describe the detail as to what is to be done, what will be measured, and how we will know when are there

## EMS and Documentation

## EMS DOCUMENTATION

- EFFECTIVE WRITING USE OF WORDS
- Lord’s Prayer					            54 words
- Ten Commandments				          297 words
- American Declaration of Independence		          300 words
- EEC Directive on Export of Duck Eggs		     26,911 words

## Documentation

- Say what you do
- Do what you say
- “Record” it (paper or electronic)
- 	Must be:
- relevant to EMS (link to aspects)
- Usable and appropriate
- Controlled
- Reviewed and revised as “continual improvement”

## Integrating Management Systems 

## VALUE OF INTEGRATION:

- 1.	Avoids re-inventing concepts and procedures
- 2.	Saves time and resources by maximizing use of efforts
- 3.	Provides minimal disruption to operations - in other words - reduces number of “new” things to be learned
- 4.	Ease of auditing

## CONCERNS OF INTEGRATION:

- 1.	Potentially confusing and unwieldy documentation
- 2.	May complicate the audit process
- 3.	Complexity of determining necessary qualifications
- 4.	Complication of third party certification

## How do I go About Evaluating if ISO 14001 Can Help Me?

## Getting Started

## Developing an EMS vs. Implementing an EMS

*Developing* the EMS involves preparing documentation, establishing roles and responsibilities, initially identifying aspects, conducting initial training, etc.
*Implementing* the EMS involves deploying it in the organization such that it becomes the way you operate, and survives beyond the initial push by changing the culture

## Getting Started-Evaluating Where You Are

- Gap Analysis, Aspect Review, Compliance Review
- Development Implementation Plan (schedule, costs, resource needs)
- Management Review and go/no go

## Getting Started- Implementation

- Filling the gaps
- Aspects analysis, policy, high level documentation, objectives and targets
- Training at all levels, synchronizing the organization
- Internal audits, corrective action
- Pre-Assessment, final go over
- Certification audit
- Maintenance and Surveillance; continual improvement

## The Long Term...

- The EMS should be maintained with the intent that it will help improve environmental performance
- This means making changes, measuring key parameters and using the metrics to make improvments
- Being committed to continual improvement for the long term

## ARE YOU READY FOR CERTIFICATION?

## Where do you need to be?

- The system has to be fully developed as to basic elements
- The system must be effectively implemented
**Both** of these components are audited in the certification process
- The EMS has to have “history” to be effectively audited (EMS audit, management review)

## Getting Ready- Areas Where the System Has to be Solid

- Presence and evidence of top management support
- Clear evidence that the organization is aware of and committed to the EMS
- Consistency across elements
- Aspects Management (procedure, how kept up to date, how well integrated into the EMS, effective significance determination)
- Documentation is effective in navigating someone through the system (beware of dead ends)
- How well procedures are _*Established*_ and _*Maintained*_

## Getting Ready- continued..

- Effective internal EMS audit process (not just an ISO 14001 element-by-element “paper” exercise)
- Integrity of Management Review process
- Continual improvement mechanisms in place
- Organizational culture reflects the EMS