Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the voluntary participation by organisations in a Community eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS) {SEC(2008) 2121} {SEC(2008) 2122}
Date: 2008-07-02
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: European organisation, environmental monitoring, environmental protection, environmental standard, management audit, management information system

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 16.7.2008 
COM(2008) 402 final 

2008/0154 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the voluntary participation by organisations in a Community eco-management and 
audit scheme (EMAS) 

{SEC(2008) 2121} 
{SEC(2008) 2122} 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

1.1. 

Grounds for and objectives of the proposal 

The  Community  Environmental  Management  and  Audit  Scheme  (hereafter  EMAS)  was 
originally established in 19931 and was revised in 2001 by Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 of 
the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  19  March  2001  allowing  voluntary 
participation by organisations in a Community Eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS)2, 
which is currently in force. 

The objective of the proposal is to strengthen the scheme by increasing its efficiency and its 
attractiveness for organisations with the aim of:  

•  increasing the number of organisations applying the scheme3 

•  having EMAS recognised as benchmark for environmental management system, 

•  allowing  organisations  applying  other  environmental  management  systems  to 

upgrade their system to EMAS 

•  creating an impact beyond the EMAS registered organisations by requiring these 
organisations  to  take  into  account  environmental  considerations  when  selecting 
their suppliers and service providers. 

The  changes  proposed  focus  on  the  substance  with  special  attention  for  the  needs  of  small 
organisations  (SMEs  and  small  public  authorities),  the  institutional  set  up  and  the  links  to 
other Community policy instruments. 

120 

1.2. 

General context 

Article 15 of the EMAS Regulation obliges the Commission to review the EMAS scheme in 
the light of the experience gained during its operation and propose appropriate amendments to 
the European Parliament and the Council. 

It is in that context that a large-scale evaluation study of the EMAS scheme was carried out in 
2005. This evaluation study, together with input from the various stakeholders in the scheme, 
identified  the  strengths  and  weaknesses  of  the  scheme  and  proposed  options  to  improve  the 
effectiveness of the Regulation. 

130 

1.3. 

Existing provisions in the area of the proposal 

Regulation  (EC)  No  761/2001  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  19  March 
2001 allowing voluntary participation by organisations in a Community Eco-management and 
audit scheme (EMAS). 

140 

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2 
3 

Council Regulation (EEC) No 1836/93 of 29 June 1993 allowing voluntary participation by companies 
in the industrial sector in a Community eco-management and audit scheme; OJ L 168, 10.7.1993, p. 1. 
OJ L 114, 24.4.2001, p. 1. 
6000  EMAS  registered  sites  at  the  end  of  2007.  For  more  detailed  information  see  COM(2008)xxx 
final; the Impact Assessment accompanying this document; § 2.1.2 and § 2.2.5. 

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1.4. 

Consistency with the other policies and objectives of the Union 

The EMAS revision is part of the package of measures accompanying the Communication on 
a Sustainable Consumption and Production Action Plan, which is to be adopted in June/July 
2008.  The  Action  Plan  seeks  to  substantially  change  consumers  and  producers  behaviours 
towards  better  products,  a  leaner  and  cleaner  production  and  a  smarter  consumption.  It  will 
encompass  together  with  the  EMAS  revision,  a  revision  of  the  Ecolabel  Regulation  and  a 
Communication on green Public Procurement. 

2. 

2.1. 

211 

CONSULTATION OF INTERESTED PARTIES AND IMPACT ASSESSMENT 

Consultation of interested parties 

Consultation methods, main sectors targeted and general profile of respondents 

The Commission services maintain a continuous dialogue with representatives of the Member 
States  and  with  the  different  stakeholders  of  the  EMAS  process,  in  order  to  follow  the 
practical implementation of the scheme. 

The  Member  States  bodies  running  the  EMAS  scheme  (Competent  Bodies,  Accreditation 
Bodies) organised a number of stakeholder meetings and seminars on the future of the scheme 
and produced recommendations for its revision. 

Member  States,  represented  in  the  Committee  established  under  Article  14  of  the  EMAS 
Regulation have been consulted at each stage of the revision process and have provided input 
into the revision work.4  
The  Commission  organised  four  working  group  meetings5  and  a  revision  workshop6  with 
selected  EMAS  experts  (EMAS  verifiers,  consultants,  Accreditation  Bodies  and  Competent 
Bodies). 

The Commission visited selected Member States to gather their opinion on the revision of the 
Regulation,  at  which  occasion  Member  States  and  other  interested  parties  put  forward  their 
ideas for the future of the scheme. 

A  large-scale  evaluation  study  on  EMAS  and  Eco-label  was  carried  out,  on  behalf  of  DG 
Environment,  by  a  consortium  of  consultants  ('EVER'  study).  It  examined  how  European 
organisations  perceive  the  motives,  success  factors  and  benefits  in  relation  to  EMAS  and  it 
provided  recommendations  for  the  revision  of  the  EMAS  scheme.  The  findings  were 
presented,  discussed  and  enriched  during  two  workshops  held  in  September  2005,  which 
involved experts, institutions, companies, practitioners and NGO's. 

The  REMAS  project,  a  three-year  project  funded  by  the  EU  LIFE  Environment  Fund,  and 
carried out by the UK Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the 
UK  Institute  of  Environmental  Management  and  Assessment  and  the  Environmental 
Protection Agency in Ireland, was concluded in May 2006. This project determined, through a 
detailed  statistical  analysis,  the  influence  of  different  types  of  environmental  management 
systems  on  site  environmental  management  activities,  and  their  subsequent  impact  on 
compliance with legislation and performance against best available techniques. 

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6 

Committee  meetings  of  20  June  2005  (Brussels),  22  November  2005  (Turin),  29-30  June  2006 
(Luxembourg), 13-14 November 2006 (Athens) and 13-14 June 2007 (Warsaw). 
On 17 May, 9 June, 20 July and 27 July 2006. 
On 11-12 December 2006. 

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212 

Summary of responses and how they have been taken into account 

The  EVER  study  showed  that  EMAS  is  considered  as  a  means  to  integrate  environmental 
concerns  in  the  organisation's  collective  value  system  and  improve  the  corporate  image. 
EMAS  is  not  only  perceived  as  a  system  to  reduce  costs  from  waste  disposal,  energy 
consumption etc.; it is also seen as a signal of environmental friendliness. 

Environmental improvements, enhanced image and costs reductions are perceived as far the 
most important benefits from adopting EMAS. Even though almost half of the respondents in 
the  EVER  study  believed  that  the  monetary  costs  of  EMAS  outweighed  the  benefits,  more 
than  two  third  of  the  respondents  considered  EMAS  as  a  success  when  comparing  the 
financial as well as non-financial benefits and costs. 

The  REMAS  project  showed  that  the  adoption  of  an  accredited  certified  environment 
management  system  improves  site  environmental  management  activities  and  that  there  is 
evidence  that  overall  environmental  management  is  better  under  EMAS  than  under  other 
systems.7 

On the other hand, the studies showed that EMAS has not reached its full potential in terms of 
diffusion.  The  costs  of  EMAS, 
the 
paperwork/bureaucracy  were  considered  by  the  respondents  in  the  EVER  study  as  the  three 
most important barriers for adoption of EMAS. Even though EMAS registrations continue to 
grow steadily (currently over 5,000 organisations are registered in the Community) this still 
represents only a very small proportion of the number of organisations that could potentially 
use the scheme. 

low  management  commitment  and 

the 

These  conclusions  were  supported  by  most  consulted  stakeholders  and  were  taken  into 
account when the Commission services analysed the options identified for the revision of the 
scheme,  and  took  a  decision  on  its  proposed  future  direction  and  on  the  changes  that  are 
needed to the current EMAS Regulation. 

213 

An  open  consultation  was  conducted  over  the  Internet  from  22/12/2006  to  26/02/2007.  The 
Commission received 214 response(s). 

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2.2. 

Impact assessment 

The  Commission  carried  out  an  impact  assessment  listed  in  the  Work  Programme  and 
considered three main options: 

• 

• 

• 

continuing with the present approach; 

gradually phasing out of the scheme and 

substantially modifying the Regulation. 

The  option  of  continuing  with  the  present  approach  would  provide  stability.  Changes 
considered  could  only  be  of  administrative  /  institutional  nature,  in  order  to  just  make  the 
current  scheme  run  better.  This  option  would,  however,  only  improve  slightly  the  "weak 
points" of the scheme and will not provide a chance for substantial modifications. Its overall 
impact will remain low, which will undermine its credibility. The visibility of the scheme will 
not increase and uneven distribution between the Member States is likely to prevail. 

7 

See COM(2008)xxx final; the Impact Assessment accompanying this document; § 1.2.1.  

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In the option of gradually phasing out the scheme financial and personnel resources would be 
set  free.  This  option  would,  however,  have  negative  environmental  and  economic  impacts. 
The Community would loose a voluntary instrument in its policy mix. The mid-term review 
of the sixth Community Environment Action Programme8 assessed the voluntary instruments 
as  having  great  potential  but  not  being  fully  developed  and  called  upon  the  Commission  to 
revise  these  schemes  in  order  to  promote  their  uptake  and  reduce  administrative  burdens  in 
their management. 

The  option  to  substantially  modify  the  Regulation  would  improve  the  visibility,  impact  and 
political profile of the EMAS scheme, which would lead into a significantly wider uptake of 
the scheme. It would enable the Community to deliver better and more focused environmental 
benefits, both directly and indirectly. It would also improve the economic situation and reduce 
the administrative burden of environmental management in participating organisations. Some 
of  the  suggested  changes  require  some  up-front  investment  and  provision  of  incentives  to 
EMAS organisations. 

Even  though  it  is  not  possible  to  predict  the  exact  increase  in  uptake  of  the  scheme  as 
quantitative data on costs and the impact of the different measures are not available and as a 
number of options are interrelated or are market-based, the objective is to have, 10 years after 
the  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation,  a  number  of  registered  organisations  or  sites  that 
equals  the  number  of  organisations  or  sites  currently  certified  under  the  ISO  14001:2004 
standard  on  environmental  management  systems  (35.000).  As  an  intermediate  objective,  5 
years  after  the  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation,  the  aim  is  to  reach  a  number  of  EMAS 
registered sites that equals the average of the three Member States with, in 2007, the highest 
number  of  registered  sites  per  million  of  inhabitants,  which  results  in  an  envisaged  total  of 
23.000 EMAS registered sites.9 

3. 

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LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL 

3.1. 

Summary of the proposed action 

The  objective  is  to  revise  the  EMAS  scheme,  as  required  by  Article  15  of  the  EMAS 
Regulation,  in  order  to  best  encourage  continuous  improvement  in  the  environmental 
performance of all organisations.  

To  achieve  this  objective,  the  revision  of  the  EMAS  Regulation  aims  at  substantially 
enhancing  the  political  profile  and  hence  the  number  of  organisations  applying  the  scheme. 
The fundamental changes proposed will focus on the substance with special attention for the 
needs of small organisations (SMEs and small public authorities), the institutional set up and 
the links to other policy instruments in particular Green Public Procurement. 

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COM(2007)225 final: Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, 
the  European  Economic  and  Social  Committee  and  the  Committee  of  the  Regions  on  the  Mid-term 
review  of  the  Sixth  Community  Environment  Action  Programme,  adopted  by  the  Commission  on 
30/04/2007. 
2007  gives  an  average  of  48,27  EMAS  registered  sites  per  million  inhabitants  in  the  three  Member 
States with the highest number of EMAS registered sites per million inhabitants. These Member States 
are Austria (61,85 sites / million inhabitants), Denmark (50,60 sites / million inhabitants) and Belgium 
(32,37  sites  /  million  inhabitants). On  a  total  of 478,5  million  inhabitants  in  the  European Union,  the 
total envisaged number of EMAS registered sites after 5 years after the entry into force of the revised 
EMAS Regulation will thus be 23.000. 

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3.2. 

Legal basis 

The Regulation is motivated by environmental policy considerations as laid down in Article 
175 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, which was already the legal basis of 
Regulation (EC) 761/2001. 

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3.3. 

Subsidiarity and proportionality 

The  adoption  of  the  scheme  at  Community  level  is  necessary  to  create  a  single  credible 
scheme  and  avoid  the  establishment  of  different  national  schemes.  This  Proposal  does  not 
alter  the  current  situation  with  regard  to  the  internal  market  and  continues  to  respect  the 
principles  of  subsidiarity  by  leaving  the  technical  implementation  of  the  Regulation  to  the 
Member  States  through  the  functioning  of  the  Competent  Bodies  and  Accreditation  Bodies. 
The  effectiveness  of  the  scheme  in  contributing  to  better  environmental  performance  of 
organisations is thus ensured whilst the measures that can be adequately performed at national 
level are left to the Member States. 

3.4. 

341 

Choice of instruments 

The proposed instrument is a regulation as this is the only adequate means for guaranteeing a 
sufficient  degree  of  harmonisation  of  rules  and  procedures  for  registration,  verification  and 
accreditation, which constitute the essential elements of the scheme. 

4. 

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BUDGETARY IMPLICATION 

The Community financial contribution is limited in overall terms. Annual Financial resources 
requested from the Community budget are estimated at around 1.5 M€ per year, covering in 
particular  development  of  reference  documents  for  specific  sectors,  peer  reviews  of 
Accreditation  Bodies  and  Competent  Bodies  and  information  and  Communication.  Until 
2013, these costs will be covered by the LIFE + Financial Instrument10. 

5. 

510 

5.1. 

511 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

Simplification 

The  proposal  provides  for  simplification  of  legislation  by  re-writing  the  text  of  the  current 
regulation and integrating useful elements of different guidelines. 

The  proposal  provides  for  simplification  of  administrative  procedures  for  organisations  by, 
among others: 

•  stimulating  further  reduction  of  the  regulatory  and  administrative  burden  by  introducing 
elements that create synergies with, and allow for, closer operational links between EMAS 
and  other  EU  legislation  and  instruments,  thus  reducing  the  administrative  burden  for 
EMAS registered organisations by way of regulatory flexibility, including both regulatory 
relief  (substitution  of  legal  requirements  without  changes  in  environmental  legislation  as 
such) or deregulation (changes in the legislation itself). 

10 

Regulation  (EC)  No  614/2007  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  23  May  2007 
concerning the Financial Instrument for the Environment (LIFE+), OJ L 149 of 9 June 2007, p.1. 

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•  introducing  the  registration  of  clusters  of  organisations  and  the  possibility  for  corporate 
registration in addition to the existing registration for individual organisations, which will 
have a direct cost-saving effect and make participation more attractive. 

•  inviting Member States to clarify the links and complementarities with other environment 
management  schemes  so  that  registration  or  participation  in  national  environment 
management  schemes  can  be  taken  into  account  when  an  organisation  applies  for 
registration under EMAS and vice versa. 

Thus, the proposal meets the objectives of the Better Regulation initiative, developed in the 
context  of  the  renewed  Lisbon  strategy  aiming  at  simplifying  and  improving  existing 
regulation, to better design new regulation and to reinforce the respect and the effectiveness of 
the rules while reducing administrative burdens.515 

The  proposal  is  included  in  the  Commission's  Legislative  and  Work  Programme  under  the 
reference  2006/ENV/053  and  it  delivers  the  commitment  undertaken  in  the  Commission’s 
Rolling Programme11 

520 

5.2. 

Repeal of existing legislation 

The adoption of the proposal will lead to the repeal of existing legislation. 

5.3. 

531 

Review/revision/sunset clause 

The proposal includes a review clause. 

560 

5.4. 

European Economic Area 

The  proposed  act  concerns  an  EEA  matter  and  should  therefore  extend  to  the  European 
Economic Area. 

570 

5.5. 

Detailed explanation of the proposal 

The  operational  scheme  of  EMAS  and  the  general  requirements  for  participation  remain 
essentially the same as under the current Regulation: organisations can participate in EMAS 
on condition that they develop an environmental policy, carry out an environmental review, 
establish an environmental management system, carry out an internal environmental audit and 
develop  an  environmental  statement.  Once  this  environmental  statement  is  verified  and 
validated by an independent environmental verifier, the organisation can apply for registration 
at  a  Competent  Body.  In  order  to  maintain  registration,  the  organisation  has  to  report  on  a 
regular  basis  on  its  environmental  performance  improvement  and  provide  evidence  that  it 
complies with applicable legal requirements relating to the environment. 

The main modifications aim at: 

– 

ensuring  that  EMAS  is  a  high  quality  environmental  management  scheme  that 
guarantees  to  external  stakeholders  and  national  enforcement  authorities  that  EMAS 
organisations comply with all relevant environmental legislation and continuously improve 
their environmental performances and 

– 

raising the attractiveness of the scheme for participating organisations, particularly for 
small  organisations  (SMEs  and  small  public  authorities),  by  reducing  the  administrative 

11 

See COM(2008)33. 

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burden  for  participating  organisations  and  by  increasing  the  visibility  of  participation  in 
EMAS. 

These modifications are: 

–  Environmental Management System. EMAS remains to be based on the environmental 
management  system  as  embodied  in  the  ISO  14001  standard,  complemented  by  the 
following elements: 

–  Reinforced compliance mechanism. The EMAS organisation has to demonstrate 
its  compliance  with  applicable  environmental  legislation  before  the  first 
registration.  Dialogue  between  the  organisation  and  the  national  enforcement 
authorities  is  encouraged.  The  role  of  verifiers  in  ensuring  that  the  organisation 
complies  is  reinforced.  The  definition  of  non-compliance  is  clarified  and  the 
procedures  by  the  competent  bodies  for  registration  and  de-registration  due  to 
non-compliance are harmonised. 

–  Reinforced environmental reporting. Reporting on environmental performance 
using  the  core  performance  indicators  is  mandatory  for  the  EMAS  registered 
organisation. These indicators are defined for the following environmental areas: 
energy  efficiency,  material  and  resource  efficiency,  waste,  emissions,  and 
biodiversity/land use. 

–  Guidance on best practice in environmental management. In order to support a 
more harmonised implementation of best practice in environmental management, 
the  Commission  initiates  the  process  of  development  of  reference  documents. 
These documents cover specific sectors and focus on direct environmental aspects 
of  production  operations  as  well  as  indirect  aspects,  e.g.  product  design,  the 
activities. 
downstream 
environmental 

upstream 

impact 

and 

of 

The  use  of  reference  documents  is  voluntary  but  the  EMAS  organisations  are 
encouraged  to  use  them  for  setting  up  their  environmental  management  system 
and for defining their environmental targets. The verifiers are required to refer to 
the documents as to the benchmark for effective management system. 

–  The  rules  and  procedures  for  accreditation  and  verification  are  harmonised  and 
defined with aim to address the uneven implementation in individual Member States that 
undermines the credibility of the scheme. Regulation (EC) No xxxx/2008 of the European 
parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  […………….  date]  setting  out  the  requirements  for 
accreditation  and  market  surveillance  relating  to  the  marketing  of  products  organises 
accreditation at the national and European levels. It insists on the public authority nature in 
order for it to be the last level of public authority control, and sets the framework for the 
recognition  of  the  existing  organisation  European  co-operation  for  Accreditation  (EA)  so 
as  to  ensure  the  proper  functioning  of  a  rigorous  peer  evaluation  system.  This  regulation 
sets the over all framework that completes existing legislation in relation to accreditation. 
This  proposal  for  a  revised  EMAS  regulation  complements  these  rules  in  so  far  as 
necessary, while taking into account the specificities of the voluntary EMAS scheme and, 
where appropriate, setting more specific rules. 

–  Geographical  scope.  Participation  of  organisations  from  outside  of  the  Community  is 
allowed. An outside-Community organisation can register in one of the Member States and 
its  environmental  management  system  has  to  be  verified  and  validated  by  a  verifier 
accredited in the Member State where the organisation will apply for registration. 

–  Measures reducing the administrative burden and creating incentives: 

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–  Simplification of the procedure for cluster registration. 

–  Reduction  of  registration  fees  for  small  organisations  (SMEs  and  small  public 

authorities).12 

–  The national authorities in Member States are obliged to identify areas where they 
can  reduce  administrative  burden  of  EMAS  registered  organisations  related  to 
environmental regulation, e.g. less frequent renewal of environmental permit, etc. 
A process of regular consultations in Member States between EMAS Competent 
Bodies  and  regulatory  authorities  will  be  set-up.  The  Commission  organises 
exchange of information on this issue. 

–  The  national  authorities  have  to  consider  and,  where  appropriate  and  without 
prejudice to the rules on state aid of the Treaty, introduce incentives from which 
EMAS  registered  organisations  can  benefit,  such  as  access  to  funding  or  tax 
incentives in the framework of schemes supporting environmental performance of 
industry. 

–  Rules  for  the  use  of  EMAS  logo  are  simplified  and  existing  restrictions  are 

removed.  

–  Promotion activities for EMAS including the EMAS award and information campaigns at 

Community and national level. 

12 

Fees for first registration of organisations in the MS vary from no fee to 2234 €. For more details on the 
different registration fees per MS see footnote 28 at § 2.2.6 of document COM(2008)xxx final: Impact 
Assessment accompanying this document. Not yet published. 

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2008/0154 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on the voluntary participation by organisations in a Community eco-management and 
audit scheme (EMAS) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
175 (1) thereof, 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission13, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee14, 
Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions15, 
Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty16, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

Article  2  of  the  Treaty  provides  that  the  Community  is  to  have  among  its  tasks  the 
promotion of sustainable growth throughout the Community. 

Decision No 1600/2002/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 July 
2002 laying down the Sixth Community Environment Action Programme17 identifies 
the  improvement  of  collaboration  and  partnership  with  enterprises  as  a  strategic 
approach  to  meeting  environmental  objectives.  Voluntary  commitments  are  an 
essential  part  thereof.  Encouraging  a  wider  participation  in  the  Community's  eco-
management  and  audit  scheme  (EMAS)  and  the  development  of  initiatives  to 
encourage organisations to publish rigorous and independently verified environmental 
or  sustainable  development  performance  reports  is  regarded  as  necessary  in  this 
context. 

The  Communication  from  the  Commission  to  the  European  Parliament,  the  Council, 
the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on 
the  Mid-term  review  of  the  Sixth  Community  Environment  Action  Programme18 
recognises that there is a need to improve the functioning of the voluntary instruments 
that  have  been  designed  for  industry  and  that  these  tools  have  a  great  potential  but 
have  not  been  fully  developed.  It  calls  upon  the  Commission  to  revise  those 
instruments  in  order  to  promote  their  participation  and  reduce  the  administrative 
burden in their management. 

13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 

OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ L 242 of 10.09.2002, p. 1. 
COM(2007) 225 final 

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(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

The  objective  of  EMAS  is  to  promote  continual  improvements  in  the  environmental 
implementation  of 
performance  of  organisations  by 
environmental  management  systems  by  organisations,  the  systematic,  objective  and 
periodic evaluation of the performance of such systems, the provision of information 
on environmental performance, an open dialogue with the public and other interested 
parties  and  the  active  involvement  of  employees  in  the  organisation  and  appropriate 
training. 

the  establishment  and 

For the purpose of promoting a coherent approach between the legislative instruments 
developed  at  Community  level  in  the  field  of  environmental  protection,  the 
Commission  and  the  Member  States  should  consider  how  registration  under  EMAS 
may  be  taken  into  account  in  the  development of  legislation  or  used  as  a  tool  in  the 
enforcement  of  legislation.  They  should  also,  in  order  to  raise  the  attractiveness  of 
EMAS  for  organisations,  take  account  of  EMAS  in  their  procurement  policies  and, 
where appropriate, refer to EMAS or equivalent environmental management systems 
as contract performance conditions for works and service. 

Article  15  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  761/2001  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the 
Council  allowing  voluntary  participation  by  organisations  in  a  Community  eco-
management and audit scheme (EMAS)19 provides that the Commission is to review 
EMAS  in  the  light  of  the  experience  gained  during  its  operation  and  propose 
appropriate amendments to the European Parliament and the Council. 

Regulation  (EC)  No  761/2001  demonstrated 
in  promoting 
improvements of the environmental performance of organisations and the experience 
gathered  from  the  implementation  of  that  Regulation  should  be  used  to  enhance  the 
ability  of  EMAS  to  bring  about  an  improvement  in  the  overall  environmental 
performance of organisations. 

its  effectiveness 

Organisations should be encouraged to participate in EMAS on a voluntary basis and 
may gain added value in terms of regulatory control, cost savings and public image. 

EMAS should be made available to all organisations, in and outside the Community, 
whose  activities  have  an  environmental  impact.  EMAS  should  provide  a  means  for 
them to manage that impact and to improve their overall environmental performance. 

(10)  Organisations,  notably  small  organisations  should  be  encouraged  to  participate  in 
EMAS. Their  participation should be promoted  by  facilitating  access  to  information, 
to  existing  support  funds  and  to  public  institutions  and  by  establishing  or  promoting 
technical assistance measures. 

(11)  Organisations implementing other environmental management systems and wanting to 
move  to  EMAS  should  be  able  to  do  so  as  easily  as  possible.  Links  with  other 
environmental management schemes should be considered. 

(12)  Organisations  with  sites  located  in  one  or  more  Member  States  should  be  able  to 

register all or a number of these sites under one single registration. 

(13)  The mechanism for establishing an organisation's compliance with all applicable legal 
requirements relating to the environment should be strengthened in  order  to  enhance 
the  credibility  of  EMAS  and,  in  particular,  to  enable  Member  States  to  reduce  the 

19 

OJ L 114, 24.04.2001, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Council Regulation (EC) No 1791/2006 (OJ 
L 363, 20.12.2006, p. 1). 

EN 

11 

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administrative burden of registered organisations by way of deregulation or regulatory 
relief. 

(14)  The implementation process of EMAS should include involvement of employees and 
workers of the organisation as this increases job satisfaction, as well as knowledge of 
environmental issues which can be replicated in and outside the work environment. 

(15)  The  EMAS  logo  should  be  an  attractive  communication  and  marketing  tool  for 
organisations, which raises the awareness of customers to EMAS. Rules for the use of 
the  EMAS  logo  should  be  simplified  by  the  use  of  one  single  logo  and  existing 
restrictions  should  be  removed  as  far  as  there  should  be  no  confusion  with 
environmental product labels. 

(16)  Costs and fees for registration under EMAS should be reasonable and proportionate to 
the size of the organisation and the work to be done by the Competent Bodies. Without 
prejudice  to  the  rules  of  the  Treaty  on  state  aid,  exemptions  or  reductions  of  fees 
should be considered for small organisations. 

(17)  Organisations  should  produce  and  make  publicly  available  periodic  environmental 
statements  and  environmental  performance  reports  providing  the  public  and  other 
interested  parties  with  information  on  their  compliance  with  applicable  legal 
requirements relating to the environment and their environmental performance. 

(18) 

In  order  to  ensure  relevance  and  comparability  of  the  information,  reporting  on  the 
progress  in  the  organisations’  environmental  performance  should  be  on  the  basis  of 
generic performance indicators focusing on key environmental areas. This should help 
organisations compare their performance over different reporting periods. 

(19)  Reference  documents  including  best  environmental  management  practice  and 
environmental  performance  indicators  for  specific  sectors  should  be  developed 
through  information  exchange  and  collaboration  between  Member  States.  Those 
documents should help organisations better focus on the most important environmental 
aspects in a given sector. 

(20)  Regulation  (EC)  No  xxxx/2008  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of 
[…………….  date]  setting  out  the  requirements  for  accreditation  and  market 
surveillance  relating  to  the  marketing  of  products  organises  accreditation  at  the 
national  and  European  levels  and  sets  the  over  all  framework  for  accreditation.  This 
regulation  complements  these  rules  in  so  far  as  necessary,  while  taking  into  account 
the  specific  features  of  EMAS  notably  the  need  to  ensure  a  high  credibility  towards 
stakeholders,  especially  Member  State  and,  where  appropriate,  setting  more  specific 
rules. 
Those  provisions  should  ensure  and  steadily 
the  competence  of 
environmental  verifiers  by  providing  for  an  independent  and  neutral  accreditation 
system,  training  and  an  appropriate  supervision  of  their  activities  and  thus  guarantee 
the transparency and credibility of organisations participating in EMAS. 

improve 

(21)  Promotion and support activities should be undertaken by both the Member States and 

the European Commission. 

(22)  Without prejudice to the rules of the Treaty on state aid, incentives should be given by 
Member States to registered organisations such as access to funding or tax incentives 
in the framework of schemes supporting environmental performance of industry.  

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(23)  Member  States  and  Commission  should  develop  and  implement  specific  measures 
aimed  at  greater  participation  in  EMAS  by  organisations,  in  particular  small 
organisations. 

(24)  With the aim of ensuring a harmonised application of this Regulation the Commission 
shall, if appropriate, produce sectoral reference documents in the area covered by this 
Regulation. 

(25)  This  Regulation  should  be  revised,  if  appropriate,  in  the  light  of  experience  gained 

after a certain period of operation.  

(26)  This  Regulation  replaces  Regulation  (EC)  No  761/2001  which  should  therefore  be 

repealed. 

(27)  Given  that  useful  elements  of  Recommendation  2001/680/EC  of  7  September  on 
guidance  for  the  implementation  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  761/2001  of  the  European 
Parliament  and  of  the  Council  allowing  voluntary  participation  by  organisations  in  a 
Community  eco-management  and  audit  scheme  (EMAS)20  and  of  Recommendation 
2003/532/EC of 10 July 2003 on guidance in the selection and use of environmental 
performance indicators in EMAS21 are included in this Regulation, these acts should 
no longer be used as they are superseded by this Regulation. 

(28)  Since the objectives of the proposed action, namely to create a single credible scheme 
and  avoid  the  establishment  of  different  national  schemes,  cannot  be  sufficiently 
achieved by the Member States and can therefore, by reason of scale and effects, be 
better  achieved  at  Community  level,  the  Community  may  adopt  measures,  in 
accordance  with  the  principle  of  subsidiarity  set  out  in  Article  5  of  the  Treaty.  In 
accordance  with  the  principle  of  proportionality,  as  set  out  in  that  Article,  this 
Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives. 

(29)  The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted 
in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the 
procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission22. 

(30) 

In  particular  the  Commission  should  be  empowered  to  establish  procedures  for  the 
peer  evaluation  of  Competent  Bodies,  to  develop  sectoral  reference  documents,  to 
recognise existing environmental management systems, or parts thereof, as complying 
with corresponding requirements of this Regulation and to amend Annexes I to VIII. 
Since  those  measures  are  of  general  scope  and  are  designed  to  amend  non-essential 
elements  of  this  Regulation,  inter  alia  by  supplementing  it  with  new  non-essential 
elements,  they  must  be  adopted  in  accordance  with  the  regulatory  procedure  with 
scrutiny provided for in Article 5a of Council Decision 1999/468/EC. 

(31)  Since  a  period  of  time  is  required  to  ensure  that  the  framework  for  the  proper 
functioning of this Regulation is in place, Member States should have a period of six 
months  following  the  date  of  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation  to  modify  the 
procedures  followed  by  Accreditation  Bodies  and  Competent  Bodies  under  the 
corresponding  provisions  of  this  Regulation.  Within  these  six  months,  Accreditation 
Bodies and Competent Bodies should be entitled to continue to apply the procedures 
established under Regulation (EC) No 761/2001, 

20 
21 
22 

OJ L 247, 17.9.2001, p. 1. 
OJ L 184, 23.7.2003, p. 19. 
OJ  L.184,  17.7.1999,  p.  23.  Decision  as  amended  by  Council  Decision  2006/512/EC  (OJ  L  200, 
22.7.2006, p.11). 

EN 

13 

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HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

EN 

14 

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CHAPTER I  

General provisions 

Article 1 

Subject matter 

A Community eco-management and audit scheme, hereafter referred to as ‘EMAS’, is hereby 
established,  allowing  voluntary  participation  by  organisations  located  inside  or  outside  the 
Community. 

Article 2 

Definitions 

For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall apply: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

"environmental policy" means an organisation’s overall aims and principles of action 
with  respect  to  the  environment  including  compliance  with  all  applicable  legal 
requirements  relating  to  the  environment  and  also  a  commitment  to  continual 
improvement of environmental performance;  

"environmental performance" means the results of an organisation's management of its 
environmental aspects; 

"legal  compliance"  means  full  implementation  of  applicable  legal  requirements, 
including permit conditions, relating to the environment; 

"environmental aspect" means an element of an organisation’s activities, products or 
services that has or can have an impact on the environment;  

"significant environmental aspect" means an environmental aspect that has or can have 
a significant environmental impact;  

"direct  environmental  aspect"  means  an  environmental  aspect  associated  with 
activities,  products  and  services  of  the  organisation  itself  over  which  it  has  direct 
management control;  

"indirect environmental aspect" means an environmental aspect which can result from 
the  interaction  of  an  organisation  with  third  parties  and  which  can  to  a  reasonable 
degree be influenced by an organisation; 

"environmental  impact"  means  any  change  to  the  environment,  whether  adverse  or 
beneficial,  wholly  or  partially  resulting  from  an  organisation’s  activities,  products  or 
services; 

"environmental programme" means a description of the measures, responsibilities and 
means  taken  or  envisaged  to  achieve  environmental  objectives  and  targets  and  the 
deadlines for achieving the environmental objectives and targets; 

EN 

15 

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(10) 

(11) 

(12) 

(13) 

(14) 

(15) 

"environmental  objective"  means  an  overall  environmental  goal,  arising  from  the 
environmental  policy,  that  an  organisation  sets  itself,  and  which  is  quantified  where 
practicable; 

"environmental  target"  means  a  detailed  and  quantified  performance  requirement, 
arising from the environmental policy and the environmental objectives, applicable to 
the organisation or parts thereof, and that needs to be set and met in order to achieve 
those objectives; 

"environmental  management  system"  means  the  part  of  the  overall  management 
system  that  includes  the  organisational  structure,  planning  activities,  responsibilities, 
practices,  procedures,  processes  and  resources  for  developing, 
implementing, 
achieving, reviewing and maintaining the environmental policy; 

"best  environmental  management  practice"  means  the  most  effective  environmental 
management system that can be implemented by organisations in a relevant sector and 
that can result in best environmental performance under given economic and technical 
conditions; 

"internal  environmental  audit"  means  a  systematic,  documented,  periodic  and 
objective evaluation of the performance of the organisation, management system and 
processes designed to protect the environment; 

"auditor"  means  an  individual  or  group  of  individuals,  belonging  to  the  organisation 
itself or a natural or legal person external to the organisation, acting on behalf of the 
organisation, carrying out an assessment of, in particular, the management system in 
place  and  determining  conformity  with  the  organisation's  policy  and  programme, 
including  compliance  with  the  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the 
organisation; 

(16) 

"environmental  performance  report"  means  the  comprehensive  information  to  the 
public  and  other  interested  parties  regarding  the  organisation's  environmental 
performance  and  compliance  with  applicable  legal  obligations  relating  to  the 
environment; 

(17) 

"environmental  statement"  means  the  comprehensive  information  to  the  public  and 
other interested parties regarding the organisation's: 

(a) 

structure and activities, 

(b) 

environmental policy and environmental management system, 

(c) 

environmental aspects and impacts, 

(d) 

environmental programme, objectives and targets, 

(e) 

environmental  performance  report  providing 
the 
organisation's  environmental  performance  and  compliance  with 
applicable legal obligations relating to the environment; 

information  on 

(18) 

(19) 

"environmental  verifier"  means  any  natural  or  legal  person,  or  any  association  or 
group  of  such  persons  qualifying  as  a  conformity  assessment  body  as  defined  in 
Regulation (EC) No xxxx/2008 , who has obtained accreditation, in accordance with 
this Regulation;  

"organisation" means a company, corporation, firm, enterprise, authority or institution, 
located  inside  or  outside  the  Community,  or  part  or  combination  thereof,  whether 
incorporated or not, public or private, that has its own functions and administrations; 

EN 

16 

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(20) 

(21) 

(22) 

(23) 

"site"  means  a  distinct  geographic  location  under  the  management  control  of  an 
organisation  covering  activities,  products  and  services,  including  all  infrastructure, 
equipment and materials;  

verification"  means 
the  conformity  assessment  process  carried  out  by  an 
environmental  verifier  to  demonstrate  that  an  organisation’s  environmental  policy, 
management system and audit procedure fulfils the requirements of this Regulation;  

"validation" means the confirmation by the environmental verifier who carried out the 
verification,  that  the  information  and  data  in  the  organisation’s  environmental 
statement  and  performance  report  are  reliable,  credible  and  correct  and  meet  the 
requirements of this Regulation; 

"enforcement authorities" means the relevant competent authorities as identified by the 
Member  States  to  detect,  prevent  and  investigate  breaches  of  applicable  legal 
requirements relating to the environment and where required take enforcement action;  

(24) 

"environmental  performance  indicator"  means  a  specific  expression  that  allows 
measurement of an organisation's environmental performance; 

(25) 

"small organisations" means: 

(a)  micro,  small  and  medium-sized  enterprises  as  defined  in  the  Commission 
Recommendation  2003/361/EC  of  6  May  2003  concerning  the  definition  of 
micro, small and medium sized enterprises23 

(b) 

local  authorities  governing  less  than  10.000  inhabitants  or  other  public 
authorities employing fewer than 250 persons and having an annual budget not 
exceeding EUR 50 million, or an annual balance sheet not exceeding EUR 43 
million, including all of the following: 

(i) 

government or other public administrations, public advisory bodies 
at national, regional or local level; 

(ii)  natural or legal persons performing public administrative functions 
under national law, including specific duties, activities  or  services 
in relation to the environment; and 

(iii)  natural or legal persons having public responsibilities or functions, 
or providing public services, relating to the environment under the 
control of a body or person referred to in point (b); 

(26)  Accreditation  Body  means  a  national  accreditation  body  within  the  meaning  of 

Regulation (EC) No xxxx/2008. 

23 

OJ L 124, 20.5.2003, p. 36. 

EN 

17 

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CHAPTER II 

Registration of organisations 

Article 3 

Determination of the Competent Body 

1. 

2. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

Applications for registration from organisations in a Member State shall be made to a 
Competent Body in that Member State. 

Applications  for  registration  from  organisations  outside  the  Community  may  be 
made  to  any  Competent  Body  in  the  Member  State  in  which  the  environmental 
verifier  who  carried  out  the  verification  and  who  validated  the  environmental 
management system of the organisation is accredited. 

An organisation with sites located in one or more Member States may apply for one 
single corporate registration of all or some of these sites. 

Applications for a single corporate registration shall be made to a Competent Body 
of  the  Member  State  where  the  organisation's  headquarter  or  management  centre 
designated for the purpose of this provision is located. 

Article 4 

Preparation for registration 

Organisations  wishing  to  be  registered  for  the  first  time  shall  carry  out  an 
environmental review of all environmental aspects of the organisation in accordance 
with Annex I. 

Organisations  may  consult  with  the  body  referred to in  Article  33(3) established in 
the Member State where the organisation applies for registration. 

Organisations which have a certified environmental management system, recognized 
according to Article 45(4), shall not be obliged to conduct a full initial environmental 
review,  with  regard 
the  recognised  certified 
information  provided  by 
environmental management system. 

to 

In the light of the results of the review, organisations shall develop and implement an 
environmental  management  system  covering  all  the  requirements  referred  to  in 
Annex  II,  and,  where  available,  taking  into  account  the  best  environmental 
management practice for the relevant sector referred to in Article 46. 

Organisations  shall  provide  material  or  documentary  evidence  showing  that  the 
organisation  complies  with  all  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the 
environment that have been identified. 

Organisations  may  request  a  statement  on  compliance  from  the  competent 
enforcement authority or authorities in accordance with Article 33(5).  

Organisations  outside  the  Community  shall  also  make  reference  to  the  legal 
requirements  relating  to  the  environment  applicable  to  similar  organisations  in  the 
Member States where they intend to submit an application.  

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18 

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6. 

7. 

8. 

1. 

2. 

Organisations  shall  carry  out  an  internal  audit  in  accordance  with  the  requirements 
set out in Annex III.  

Organisations  shall  prepare  an  environmental  statement,  in  accordance  with  Annex 
IV Part B. 

Where sectoral reference documents as referred to in Article 46 are available for the 
specific sector, the assessment of the organisation’s performance shall be made with 
reference to the relevant document. 

The  initial  environmental  review,  the  environment  management  system,  the  audit 
procedure  and  the  environmental  statement  shall  be  verified  by  an  accredited 
environmental  verifier  and  the  environmental  statement  shall  be  validated  by  that 
environmental verifier.  

Article 5 

Application for registration 

Any  organisation  meeting  requirements  set  out  in  Article  4  may  apply  for 
registration. 

The application for registration shall be made to the Competent Body determined in 
accordance with Article 3 and shall include the following: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

the validated environmental statement in electronic format; 

the  declaration  as  referred  to  in  Article  24(9),  signed  by  the  environmental 
verifier who validated the environmental statement,: 

a completed form, which includes at least the minimum information on as set 
out in Annex VI; 

(d) 

evidence of payment of applicable fees. 

CHAPTER III 

Obligations of registered organisations 

Article 6 

1. 

A registered organisation shall on a three-yearly basis: 

Maintenance of EMAS registration 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

have the full environmental management system and audit programme verified, 

prepare  the  environmental  statement  in  accordance  with  the  requirements  set 
out in Annex IV, Parts B and D, 

have the environmental statement validated,  

forward the validated environmental statement to the Competent Body, 

forward to the Competent Body a completed form, which includes at least the 
minimum information set out in Annex VI. 

2. 

A registered organisation shall, on an annual basis: 

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19 

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(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

carry  out  an  internal  audit  of  the  environmental  performance  and  the 
compliance  with  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the  environment  in 
accordance with Annex III, 

prepare  an  environmental  performance  report 
requirements laid down in Annex IV Parts C and D, 

in  accordance  with 

the 

forward  the  validated  environmental  performance  report  to  the  Competent 
Body, 

forward to the Competent Body a completed form, which includes at least the 
minimum information set out in Annex VI. 

Registered  organisations 
statement  and 
environmental  performance  report  accessible  to  the  public  within  one  month  of 
registration and one month after the maintenance of the registration. 

their  environmental 

shall  make 

They  may  satisfy  that  requirement  by  providing  access  to  the  environmental 
statement upon request or by creating links to Internet sites where the environmental 
statement can be accessed. 

They shall inform the Competent Body of the way they provide public access. 

Article 7 

Derogation for small organisations 

Competent  Bodies  shall,  upon  request  of  a  small  organisation,  extend  for  that 
organisation, the three-yearly frequency referred to in Article 6(1) up to five years or 
the annual frequency referred to in Article 6(2) up to two years, provided that all the 
following conditions are met: 

(a) 

(b) 

no environmental risks are present, 

the  organisation  has  no  operational  changes  planned  to  its  environmental 
management system, and 

(c) 

there exist no significant local environmental problems. 

In  order  to  obtain  the  extension  referred  to  in  paragraph  1,  the  organisation 
concerned  shall  submit  a  request  to  the  Competent  Body  that  has  registered  the 
organisation and provide evidence that the conditions for derogation are fulfilled. 

Organisations  benefiting  from  an  extension  as  referred  to  in  paragraph  1  up  to  two 
years  shall  forward  the  non-validated  environmental  performance  report  to  the 
Competent  Body  in  each  year  that  they  are  exempt  from  the  obligation  to  have  a 
validated environmental performance report. 

Article 8 

Substantial changes 

In  case  of  substantial  changes  in  a  registered  organisation,  the  organisation  shall 
carry  out  an  environmental  review  of  these  changes,  including  their  environmental 
aspects and impacts. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

1. 

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20 

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2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

The  organisation  shall  update  the  initial  environmental  review  and  modify  the 
environmental policy of the organisation accordingly. 

The  updated  environmental  review  and  the  modified  environmental  policy  shall  be 
verified and validated. 

After validation, the organisation shall submit changes to the Competent Body using 
the form set out in Annex VI and make the changes publicly available. 

Article 9 

Environmental audit 

A registered organisation shall establish an audit programme that ensures that over a 
period of time, not exceeding three years, all activities in the organisation are subject 
to an audit in accordance with the requirements set out in Annex III.  

The audit shall be carried out by auditors who possess, individually or collectively, 
the  competence  necessary  for  carrying  out  these  tasks  and  are  sufficiently 
independent of the activities they audit to make an objective judgment. 

The organisation’s environmental auditing programme shall define the objectives of 
each audit or audit cycle including the audit frequency for each activity. 

A written audit report shall be prepared by the auditors at the end of each audit and 
audit cycle. 

The  auditor  shall  communicate  the  findings  and  conclusions  of  the  audit  to  the 
organisation. 

Following  the  audit  process,  the  organisation  shall  prepare  and  implement  an 
appropriate action plan. 

The organisation shall put in place appropriate mechanisms that ensure that the audit 
results are followed up. 

Article 10 

Use of the EMAS logo 

The  EMAS  logo  set  out  in  Annex  V  may  be  used  only  by  registered  organisations 
and only as long as their registration is valid. 

The logo shall always bear the registration number of the organisation. 

The EMAS logo may only be used in accordance with the technical specifications set 
out in Annex V. 

In case an organisation chooses, in accordance with Article 3(3) not to include all its 
sites  within  the  Community  in  the  corporate  registration,  it  shall  ensure  that  in  its 
communications with the public and in its use of the EMAS logo, it is clear which 
sites are covered by the registration. 

The logo shall not be used in conjunction with comparative claims concerning other 
activities  and  services  or  in  a  way  that  may  create  confusion  with  environmental 
product labels. 

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21 

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5. 

Any environmental information published by a registered organisation may bear the 
EMAS  logo  provided  makes  reference  to  the  organisation's  latest  environmental 
statement  from  which  it  was  drawn  and  it  has  been  validated  by  an  environmental 
verifier as being: 

(a) 

accurate, 

(b) 

substantiated and verifiable, 

(c) 

relevant and used in an appropriate context or setting, 

(d) 

representative of the overall environmental performance of the organisation, 

(e) 

(f) 

unlikely to result in misinterpretation, 

significant in relation to the overall environmental impact. 

CHAPTER IV 

Rules applicable to Competent Bodies 

Article 11 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

Designation and role of Competent Bodies  

Member States shall designate Competent Bodies, which shall be responsible for the 
registration of organisations in accordance with this Regulation. 

The  Competent  Bodies  shall  control  the  entry  and  maintenance  of  organisations  on 
the register. 

Competent Bodies may be national, regional or local. 

The  composition  of  the  Competent  Bodies  shall  guarantee  their  independence  and 
neutrality. 

Competent Bodies shall have the appropriate resources, both financial and in terms 
of personnel, for the proper performance of their tasks. 

Competent  Bodies  shall  apply  this  Regulation  in  a  consistent  manner  and  shall 
participate in regular peer evaluation as set out in Article 16. 

Article 12 

Obligations concerning the registration process 

1. 

Competent  Bodies  shall  establish  procedures  for  the  registration  of  organisations. 
They shall in particular establish rules for: 

(a) 

considering  observations  from  interested  parties,  including  Accreditation 
Bodies  and  competent  enforcement  authorities,  concerning  applicant  or 
registered organisations, 

(b) 

refusal of registration, suspension or deletion of organisations, and 

(c) 

resolution of appeals and complaints made against their decisions. 

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22 

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2. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

1. 

2. 

Competent Bodies shall establish and maintain a register of organisations registered 
in  their  Member  States,  including  their  environmental  statement  or  environmental 
performance report in electronic format, and update that register on a monthly basis. 

The register shall be publicly available on a website.  

Competent Bodies shall each month communicate changes in the register referred to 
in paragraph 2 to the Commission. 

Article 13 

Registration of organisations 

Competent  Bodies  shall  consider  applications  for  registration  of  organisations  in 
accordance with the procedures established to this end. 

Where  an  organisation  applies  for  registration,  the  Competent  Body  shall  register 
that organisation and give it a registration number if all the following conditions are 
fulfilled: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

the  Competent  Body  has  received  an  application  for  registration,  which 
includes all the documents referred to in points (a) to (d) of Article 5(2); 

the Competent Body has checked that the verification and validation have been 
carried out in accordance with the obligations set out in Articles 24 tot 27; and 

the Competent Body is satisfied on the basis of material evidence received or 
through a positive report from the competent enforcement authority of the legal 
compliance of the organisation; 

Competent Bodies shall inform the organisation that it has been registered. 

If a Competent Body concludes that an applicant organisation does not comply with 
the requirements set out in paragraph 2, it shall refuse to register that organisation. 

If  a  Competent  Body  receives  a  supervision  report  from  the  Accreditation  Body 
which  provides  evidence  that  the  activities  of  the  environmental  verifier  were  not 
performed adequately enough to ensure that the requirements of this Regulation are 
met by the applicant organisation, it shall refuse to register that organisation. 

In  order  to  obtain  the  necessary  evidence  for  taking  a  decision  on  refusal  of 
registration of organisations, the Competent Body shall consult the concerned parties 
including the organisation. 

Article 14 

Suspension or deletion of organisations from the register 

If  a  Competent  Body  believes  that  a  registered  organisation  does  not  comply  with 
this Regulation, it shall give the organisation the opportunity to submit its views on 
the matter. Should the organisation fail to provide a satisfactory response it shall be 
deleted or suspended from the register. 

If  a  Competent  Body  receives  a  supervision  report  from  the  Accreditation  Body 
which  provides  evidence  that  the  activities  of  the  environmental  verifier  were  not 

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3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

8. 

9. 

10. 

performed adequately enough to ensure that the requirements of this Regulation are 
met by the EMAS-registered organisation, registration shall be suspended. 

A  registered  organisation  shall  be  suspended  or  deleted  from  the  register,  as 
appropriate,  if  it  fails  to  submit  to  a  Competent  Body,  within  one  month  of  being 
required to do so, any of the following: 

(a) 

(b) 

the  validated  updates  of  the  environmental  statements,  the  environmental 
performance report or the signed declaration referred to in Article 24(9); 

a form, which includes at least the minimum information set out in Annex VI 
from the organisation.  

If a Competent Body is informed by the competent enforcement authority of a breach 
by the organisation of any applicable legal requirements relating to the environment, 
it shall suspend or delete that organisation from the register as appropriate. 

In case a Competent Body decides to suspend or delete a registration it shall take into 
account at least the following:  

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

the  environmental  effect  of  the  non-compliance  by  the  organisation  with  the 
obligations of this Regulation; 

the forseeability of the non-compliance by the organisation with the obligations 
of this Regulation or the circumstances leading to it; 

previous  non-compliances  with  the  obligations  of  this  Regulation  by  the 
organisation; and 

(d) 

the specific circumstances of the organisation.  

In  order  to  provide  the  Competent  Body  with  the  necessary  evidence  for  taking  its 
decision, on suspension or deletion of organisations from the register it shall consult 
the concerned parties including the organisation. 

Where  the  Competent  Body  has  received  evidence  otherwise  than  through  a 
supervision  report  of  the  Accreditation  Body,  that  activities  of  the  environmental 
verifier were not performed adequately enough to ensure that the requirements of this 
Regulation  are  met  by  the  organisation,  it  shall  consult  the  Accreditation  Body 
supervising the environmental verifier. 

The Competent Body shall give reasons for any measures taken. 

The  Competent  Body  shall  provide  appropriate  information  to  the  organisation 
concerning the consultations with the concerned parties. 

Suspension of an organisation from the register shall be lifted if the Competent Body 
has received satisfactory information that the organisation is in compliance with the 
requirements of this Regulation. 

Article 15 

Forum of Competent Bodies 

1. 

A Forum of Competent Bodies from all Member States (hereinafter "Forum") shall 
be  set  up  by  the  Competent  Bodies.  It  shall  meet  at  least  once  per  year  in  the 
presence of a representative of the Commission. 

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2. 

3. 

Competent  bodies  of  each  Member  State  shall  participate  in  the  Forum.  Where 
several  competent  bodies  are  established  within  one  Member  State,  appropriate 
measures shall be taken to ensure that all of them are informed about the activities of 
the Forum.  

The Forum shall develop guidance to ensure the consistency of procedures relating to 
the  registration  of  organisations  in  accordance  with  this  Regulation,  including 
suspension  and  deletion  of  organisations  from  the  register.  It  shall  transmit  to  the 
Commission the guidance documents and documents referring to the peer evaluation. 
These documents shall be made publicly available. 

4. 

The Forum shall adopt its rules of procedure. 

Article 16 

Peer evaluation of Competent Bodies 

1. 

2. 

3. 

A  peer  evaluation  shall  be  organised  by  the  Forum  to  assess  conformity  of  the 
registration system of every Competent Body with this Regulation and to develop a 
harmonised approach of the application of the rules relating to registration. 

The  peer  evaluation  shall  be  carried  out  on  a  regular  basis  and  at  least  every  four 
years. All Competent Bodies shall participate in the peer evaluation. 

The peer evaluation shall include at least an assessment of the rules and procedures 
relating to: 

(a) 

registration; 

(b) 

refusal of registration; 

(c) 

suspension of organisations from the register referred to in Article 12(2); 

(d)  deletion of organisations from the register referred to in Article 12(2); 

(e)  management of the register referred to in Article 12(2). 

4. 

The Commission shall establish procedures for carrying out the evaluation, including 
appropriate appeals procedures against decisions taken as a result of the evaluation. 

Those  measures,  designed  to  amend  non-essential  elements  of  this  Regulation,  by 
supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with 
scrutiny referred to in Article 49(3). 

5. 

The Forum shall transmit to the Commission an annual report of the peer evaluation.  

That report shall be made publicly available. 

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CHAPTER V 

Environmental verifiers  

Article 17 

Tasks of Environmental verifiers  

1. 

Environmental verifiers shall assess whether an organisation’s environmental review, 
environmental  policy,  management  system  and  audit  procedures  comply  with  the 
requirements of this Regulation.  

2. 

Environmental verifiers shall check the following:  

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

compliance  of  the  organisation  with  all  the  requirements  of  this  Regulation 
with  respect  to  the  initial  environmental  review,  environmental  management 
system, environmental audit and its results and the environmental statement or 
the environmental performance report; 

compliance of the organisation with applicable Community, national, regional 
or local legal requirements relating to the environment; 

the organisation’s continuous improvement of environmental performance; and 

the  reliability,  credibility  and  correctness  of  the  data  and  information  in  the 
following documents: 

(i) 

the environmental statement; 

(ii) 

the environmental performance report;  

(iii)  any environmental information to be validated. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

Environmental  verifiers  shall,  in  particular,  investigate  the  technical  validity  of  the 
initial  environmental  review,  or  audit  or  other  procedures  carried  out  by  the 
organisation, without unnecessarily duplicating those procedures.  

Where  appropriate  environmental  verifiers  shall  use  spot-checks  to  determine 
whether the results of the internal audit are reliable. 

At the time of the verification for the preparation for registration of an organisation, 
the  environmental  verifier  shall  check  that  at  least  the  following  requirements  are 
met by that organisation: 

(a) 

(b) 

a  fully  operational  environmental  management  system  in  accordance  with 
Annex II is in place; 

a fully planned audit programme is in place and has begun in accordance with 
Annex III so that at least areas with the most significant environmental impact 
have been covered; 

(c) 

the management review referred to in Part A of Annex II is completed; and 

(d) 

an environmental statement is prepared in accordance with Part B of Annex IV. 

6. 

For the purposes of the verification for the maintenance of registration referred to in 
Article  6(1),  the  environmental  verifier shall  check  that  the  following  requirements 
are met by the organisation: 

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(a) 

(b) 

a  fully  operational  environmental  management  system  in  accordance  with 
Annex II; 

a fully operational planned audit programme, with at least a cycle completed in 
accordance with Annex III; 

(c) 

completion of one management review; and 

(d)  preparation of an environmental statement in accordance with Part B of Annex 

IV. 

7. 

For  the  purposes  of  the  verification  for  maintenance  of  registration  referred  to  in 
Article  6(2),  the  environmental  verifier  shall  check  that  at  least  the  following 
requirements are met by the organisation: 

(a) 

(b) 

the  organisation  has  carried  out  an  internal  audit  of  the  environmental 
performance and the compliance with applicable legal requirements relating to 
the environment in accordance with Annex III; 

the  organisation  demonstrates  ongoing  compliance  with  applicable  legal 
requirements  relating  to  the  environment  and  continual  improvement  of  its 
environmental performance; and 

(c) 

the  organisation  has  prepared  an  environmental  performance  report  in 
accordance with Part C of Annex IV. 

Article 18 

Frequency of verification 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  design,  in  consultation  with  the  organisation,  a 
programme  that  ensures  that  all  elements  required  for  registration  and  maintenance 
of registration referred to in Articles 4, 5 and 6 are verified.  

The  environmental  verifier  shall  at  intervals  not  exceeding  12  months  validate  any 
updated 
the  environmental 
performance report. 

the  environmental  statement  or 

information 

in 

Article 19 

Requirements for environmental verifiers 

In  order  to  obtain  accreditation  in  accordance  with  this  Regulation,  a  candidate 
environmental  verifier  shall  introduce  a  request  with  the  Accreditation  Body  from 
which it seeks accreditation. 

That  request  shall  specify  the  scope  of  requested  accreditation  by  reference  to  the 
classification of economic activities as set out in Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006 of 
the European Parliament and of the Council24. 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  provide  to  the  Accreditation  Body  appropriate 
evidence  of  his  knowledge,  relevant  experience  and  technical  capacities  relevant  to 
the scope of the requested accreditation in the following fields: 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

24 

OJ L 393, 30.12.2006, p. 1. 

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(a) 

this Regulation; 

(b) 

the general functioning of environmental management systems; 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

(h) 

(i) 

(j) 

relevant sectoral reference documents issued by the Commission, under Article 
46, for the use of this Regulation; 

the  legislative,  regulatory  and  administrative  requirements  relevant  to  the 
activity subject to verification and validation; 

environmental  aspects  and  impacts  including  the  environmental  dimension  of 
sustainable development; 

of the technical aspects, relevant to environmental issues, of the activity subject 
to verification and validation; 

the general functioning of the activity subject to verification and validation in 
order to assess the appropriateness of the management system, in relation to the 
interaction  of  the  organisation  and  its  products,  services  and  operations  with 
the environment including at least the following: 

(i) 

technologies employed by the organisation; 

(ii) 

terminology and tools deployed in the activities;  

(iii)  operational  activities  and  characteristics  of  their  interaction  with  the 

environment; 

(iv)  methodologies for the evaluation of significant environmental aspects; 

(v)  pollution control and mitigation technologies; 

environmental auditing requirements and methodology including the ability to 
undertake  effective  verification  audits  of  an  environmental  management 
system,  identification  of  appropriate  audit  findings  and  conclusions  and 
preparation  and  presentation  of  audits  reports,  in  oral  and  written  forms,  to 
provide a clear record of the verification audit; 

information  audit,  environmental  statement  and  environmental  performance 
report  in  relation  to  data  management,  data  storage  and  manipulation, 
presentation  of  data  in  written  and  graphical  format  for  the  appreciation  of 
potential data errors, use of assumptions and estimates; 

the  environmental  dimension  of  products  and  services 
the 
environmental aspects and performance during the usage and post-use, and the 
integrity of data provided for environmental decision making. 

including 

3. 

4. 

5. 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  be  required  to  demonstrate  a  system  of  continued 
professional development in the fields of competence set out in paragraph 2 and to 
maintain such development for assessment by the Accreditation Body. 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  be  independent,  in  particular  of  the  organisation's 
auditor or consultant, impartial and objective in performing his activities. 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  ensure  that  he  is  free  from  any  commercial, 
financial  or  other  pressures  which  might  influence  the  judgment  of  the  verifier  or 
endanger  trust  in  the  independence  of  judgment  and  integrity  in  relation  to  the 
verification  activities.  The  environmental  verifier  shall  ensure  compliance  with  any 
rules applicable in this respect. 

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6. 

7. 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  have  documented  methods  and  procedures, 
including quality control mechanisms and confidentiality provisions, to comply with 
the verification and validation requirements of this Regulation. 

Where  an  organisation  acts  as  environmental  verifier,  it  shall  keep  an  organisation 
chart detailing structures and responsibilities within the organisation and a statement 
of legal status, ownership and funding sources. 

That organisation chart shall be made available on request.  

Article 20 

Additional requirements for environmental verifiers being natural persons and performing 
verification and validation activities individually 

1. 

Natural  persons  acting  as  environmental  verifiers  and  performing  verification  and 
validation individually shall have, in addition to complying with the requirements set 
out in Article 19: 

(a) 

all the necessary competence to perform verification and validation activities in 
their accredited fields, 

(b) 

a limited scope of accreditation dependant on their personal competence. 

2. 

Compliance with these requirements shall be ensured through the assessment carried 
out prior to the accreditation and through the supervision by the Accreditation Body. 

Article 21 

1. 

2. 

3. 

Additional requirements for environmental verifiers active in third countries  

Where  an  environmental  verifier  intends  to  carry  out  verification  and  validation 
activities in third countries, he may seek accreditation for specific third countries. 

In  order  to  obtain  accreditation  for  a  third  country,  the  environmental  verifier  shall 
meet,  in  addition  to  the  requirements  set  out  in  Articles  19  and  20,  the  following 
requirements: 

(a) 

knowledge and understanding of the legislative, regulatory and administrative 
requirements  relating  to  the  environment  in  the  third  country  for  which 
accreditation is sought; 

(b)  knowledge and understanding of the official language of the third country for 

which accreditation is sought. 

The  requirements  set  out  in  paragraph  2  shall  be  deemed  to  be  met,  if  the 
environmental  verifier  demonstrates  the  existence  of  a  contractual  relationship 
between himself and a qualified person or organisation fulfilling those requirements. 

That person or organisation shall be independent of the organisation to be verified.  

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Article 22 

Supervision of environmental verifiers 

1. 

Supervision  of  verification  and  validation  activities  carried  out  by  environmental 
verifiers in: 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

the  Member  State  where  they  are  accredited,  shall  be  carried  out  by  the 
Accreditation Body that granted the accreditation; 

a  third  country  shall  be  carried  out  by  the  Accreditation  Body  that  granted 
accreditation to the environmental verifier for those activities; 

a  Member  States  other  than  where  accreditation  was  granted,  shall  be  carried 
out by the Accreditation Body of the latter Member State. 

At  least  five  working  days  in  advance  of  each  verification  in  a  Member  State,  the 
environmental verifier shall notify his accreditation details and time and place of the 
verification  to  the  Accreditation  Body  responsible  for  the  supervision  of  the 
environmental verifier concerned. 

The environmental verifier shall immediately inform the Accreditation Body of any 
changes which have a bearing on the accreditation or its scope. 

Provision shall be made by the Accreditation Body, at regular intervals not exceeding 
24  months,  to  ensure  that  the  environmental  verifier  continues  to  comply  with  the 
accreditation  requirements  and  to  monitor  the  quality  of  the  verification  and 
validation activities undertaken. 

Supervision  may  consist  of  office  audit,  on  the  spot  supervision  in  organisations, 
questionnaires,  review  of  environmental  statements  or  environmental  performance 
reports validated by the environmental verifiers and review of verification report.  

Supervision shall be proportionate with the activity undertaken by the environmental 
verifier. 

Any decision taken by the Accreditation Body to terminate or suspend accreditation 
or  restrict  the  scope  of  accreditation  shall  be  taken  only  after  the  environmental 
verifier has had the possibility of a hearing. 

If the supervising Accreditation Body is of the opinion that the quality of the work of 
an  environmental  verifier  does  not  meet  the  requirements  of  this  Regulation,  a 
supervision report shall be transmitted to the environmental verifier concerned and to 
the  Competent  Body  to  which  the  organisation  concerned  intends  to  apply  for 
registration or which registered the organisation concerned. 

In  case  of  any  further  dispute,  the  supervision  report  shall  be  transmitted  to  the 
Meeting of the Accreditation Bodies referred to in Article 30. 

Article 23 

Additional requirements for supervision of environmental verifiers active in a Member State 
other than that where accreditation was granted 

1. 

An  environmental  verifier  accredited  in  one  Member  State,  shall,  at  least  five 
working  days  before  performing  verification  and  validation  activities  in  another 

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Member  State,  notify  to  the  Accreditation  Body  of  the  latter  Member  State  the 
following information: 

(a) 

his accreditation details, competences and team composition if appropriate; 

(b) 

the time and place of the verification and validation;  

(c) 

address and contact details of the organisation. 

That  notification  shall  be  provided  before  each  new  verification  and  validation 
activity. 

The Accreditation Body may request clarification of the verifier's knowledge of the 
necessary applicable legal requirements relating to the environment. 

The  Accreditation  Body  may  require  other  conditions  than  those  referred  to  in 
paragraph  1,  only  if  those  other  conditions  do  not  prejudice  the  right  of  the 
environmental  verifier  to  provide  services  in  a  Member  State  other  than  the  one 
where accreditation was granted. 

The  Accreditation  Body  shall  not  use  the  procedure  referred  to  in  paragraph  1  to 
delay  the  arrival  of  the  environmental  verifier.  Where  the  accreditation  body  is  not 
able  to  fulfill  its  tasks  according  to  paragraphs  2  and  3  before  the  time  for 
verification  and  validation  as  notified  by  the  verifier  in  accordance  to  point  (b)  of 
paragraph 1, it shall communicate a reasoned justification to the verifier.  

No  discriminatory  fees  for  notification  and  supervision  shall  be  charged  by  the 
accreditation bodies. 

If the supervising Accreditation Body is of the opinion that the quality of the work of 
the  environmental  verifier  does  not  meet  the  requirements  of  this  Regulation,  a 
supervision  report  shall  be  transmitted  to  the  environmental  verifier  concerned,  the 
Accreditation Body which granted the accreditation, and to the Competent Body to 
which  the  organisation  concerned  intends  to  apply  for  registration  or  which 
registered the organisation concerned. In case of any further dispute the supervision 
report  shall  be  transmitted  to  the  meeting  of  Accreditation  Bodies  referred  to  in 
Article 30. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

Organisations  must  allow  the  Accreditation  Bodies  to  supervise  the  environmental 
verifier during the verification and validation process. 

Article 24 

Conditions for performing verification and validation 

1. 

The environmental verifier shall operate within the scope of his accreditation, and on 
the basis of a written agreement with the organisation. 

That agreement shall: 

(a) 

(b) 

specify the scope of the activity, 

specify conditions aimed at enable the environmental verifier to operate in an 
independent professional manner, and 

(c) 

commit the organisation to providing the necessary cooperation. 

2. 

The environmental verifier shall ensure that the components of the organisation are 
unambiguously defined and correspond to a real division of the activities. 

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The  environmental  statement  shall  clearly  specify  the  different  parts  of  the 
organisation that are subject to verification or validation. 

The  environmental  verifier  shall  carry  out  an  assessment  of  the  elements  set  out  in 
Article 17. 

Within verification and validation activities the environmental verifier shall examine 
documentation, visit the organisation, carry out spot-checks and conduct interviews 
with personnel. 

Prior to a visit by the environmental verifier, the organisation shall provide him with 
basic information about the organisation and its activities, the environmental policy 
and  programme,  the  description  of  the  environmental  management  system  in 
operation  in  the  organisation,  details  of  the  environmental  review  or  audit  carried 
out, the report on that review or audit and on any corrective action taken afterwards, 
and the draft environmental statement or the environmental performance report. 

The environmental verifier shall prepare a written report for the organisation, on the 
outcome of the verification, which shall specify:  

(a) 

(b) 

all issues relevant to the activity carried out by the environmental verifier; 

a description of conformity with all requirements of this Regulation including 
supporting evidence, findings and conclusions. 

In  cases  of  non-conformity  with  the  provisions  of  this  Regulation,  the  report  shall 
specify: 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

findings  and  conclusions  on  the  non-conformity  by  the  organisation  and 
evidence on which these findings and conclusion are based; 

technical  defects  in  the  environmental  review,  audit  method,  environmental 
management system, or any other relevant process; 

points  of  disagreement  with  the  draft  environmental  statement  or  the 
environmental performance report, and details of the amendments or additions 
that  should  be  made  to  the  environmental  statement  or  the  environmental 
performance report; 

the  comparison  of 
the  previous 
environmental  statements  and  the  performance  assessment  and  assessment  of 
the continuous performance improvement of the organisation.  

the  achievements  and 

targets  with 

8. 

After  verification,  the  environmental  verifier  shall  validate  the  organisation's 
environmental  statement  or  environmental  performance  report  to  confirm  that  it 
meets  the  requirements  of  this  Regulation  provided  that  the  outcome  of  the 
verification confirms: 

(a) 

that the information and data in the organisation’s environmental statement or 
environmental  performance  report  are  reliable  and  correct  and  meet  the 
requirements of this Regulation; 

(b) 

that  the  organisation  fulfils  all  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the 
environment. 

9. 

Upon validation, the environmental verifier shall issue a signed statement as referred 
to  in  Annex  VII  declaring  that  the  verification  was  carried  out  in  accordance  with 
this Regulation. 

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Article 25 

Verification and validation of small organisations 

1. 

When  carrying  out  verification  and  validation  activities,  the  environmental  verifier 
shall  take  into  account  specific  characteristics  of  small  organisations,  including  the 
following: 

(a) 

short reporting lines;  

(b)  multifunctional staff;  

(c) 

on-the-job training;  

(d) 

the ability to adapt rapidly to change; and 

(e) 

limited documentation of procedures. 

2. 

3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

2. 

The environmental verifier shall conduct verification or validation in a way that does 
not impose unnecessary burdens on small organisations. 

The environmental verifier shall take into account objective evidence that a system is 
effective,  including  the  existence  of  procedures  within  the  organisation  that  are 
proportionate to the size and complexity of the operation, the nature of the associated 
environmental impacts and the competence of the operators. 

Article 26 

Conditions of verification and validation in Member States other than the one where the 
verifiers is accredited 

Environmental  verifiers  accredited  in  one  Member  State  may  perform  verification 
and  validation  activities  in  any  other  Member  State  in  accordance  with  the 
requirements set out in this Regulation. 

At least five working days before each verification or validation in a Member State 
other than the one where the environmental verifier is accredited, the environmental 
verifier  shall  notify  his  or  her  accreditation  details  and  time  and  place  of  the 
verification or validation to the Accreditation Body of the other Member State. 

The Accreditation Body may request clarification of the verifier's knowledge of the 
necessary applicable legal requirements relating to the environment. 

The  verification  or  validation  activity  shall  be  subject  to  supervision  by  the 
Accreditation Body of the Member State where the activity is to be performed. The 
start of the activity shall be notified to that Member State. 

Article 27 

Conditions for verification and validation in third countries  

Environmental verifiers accredited in a Member State may perform verification and 
validation activities for an organisation located in a third country in accordance with 
the requirements set out in this Regulation. 

At  least  six  weeks  before  verification  or  validation  in  a  third  country,  the 
environmental verifier shall notify his or her accreditation details and time and place 

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3. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

of  the  verification  or  validation  to  the  Accreditation  Body  of  the  Member  State  in 
which the organisation concerned intends to apply for registration or is registered. 

The  verification  and  validation  activities  shall  be  subject  to  supervision  by  the 
Accreditation Body of the Member State in which the organisation concerned intends 
to apply for registration or is registered. The start of the activity shall be notified to 
that Member State. 

Chapter VI 

Accreditation Bodies 

Article 28 

Operation of Accreditation 

Accreditation  Bodies  appointed  by  the  Member  States  pursuant  to  Article  4  of 
Regulation  (EC)  No  xxxx/2008,  shall  be  responsible  for  the  accreditation  of 
environmental  verifiers  and  the  supervision  of  the  activities  carried  out  by 
environmental verifiers in accordance with this Regulation. 

Accreditation Bodies shall assess an environmental verifiers’ competence in the light 
of  the  elements  set  out  in  Articles  19,  20  and  21  relevant  to  the  scope  of  the 
requested accreditation. 

The scope of accreditation of environmental verifiers shall be determined according 
to  the  classification  of  economic  activities  as  set  out  in  Regulation  (EC)  No 
1893/2006.  That  scope  shall  be  limited  by  the  competence  of  the  environmental 
verifier and, where appropriate, it shall take into account the size and complexity of 
the activity. 

Accreditation Bodies shall establish appropriate procedures on accreditation, refusal 
of  accreditation,  suspension  and  withdrawal  of  accreditation  of  environmental 
verifiers and on supervision of environmental verifiers. 

Those  procedures  shall  include  mechanisms  for  considering  observations  from 
concerned parties, including Competent Bodies, concerning applicant and accredited 
environmental verifiers. 

In  case  of  a  refusal  of  accreditation,  the  Accreditation  Body  shall  inform  the 
environmental verifier of the reasons for the decision. 

Accreditation  Bodies  shall  establish,  revise  and  update  a  list  of  environmental 
verifiers  and  their  scope  of  accreditation  in  their  Member  States  and  shall 
communicate  changes  in  that  list  each  month  to  the  Commission  and  to  the 
Competent Body of the Member State where the Accreditation Body is located. 

Within the framework of the rules and procedures regarding monitoring of activities 
as  laid  down  in  Article  5(3)  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  xxxx/2008,  an  Accreditation 
Body shall draw up a supervision report where it decides, after consultation with the 
environmental verifier concerned, either of the following: 

(a) 

that the activities of the environmental verifier were not performed adequately 
enough  to  ensure  that  the  requirements  of  this  Regulation  are  met  by  the 
organisation; 

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(b) 

that  the  verification  and  the  validation  by  the  environmental  verifier  were 
carried out in violation of one or more of the requirements of this Regulation. 

This report shall be transmitted to the Competent Body in the Member State where 
the  organisation  is  registered  or  applies  for  registration  and,  if  applicable,  to  the 
Accreditation Body that granted the accreditation. 

Article 29 

Suspension and withdrawal of accreditation 

Suspension or withdrawal of accreditation shall require the consultation of concerned 
parties  including  the  environmental  verifier,  in  order  to  provide  the  Accreditation 
Body with the necessary evidence for taking its decision.  

The Accreditation Body shall inform the environmental verifier of the reasons for the 
measures  taken  and,  if  applicable,  of  the  process  of  discussion  with  the  competent 
enforcement authority.  

The  accreditation  shall  be  suspended  or  withdrawn  until  assurance  of  the  verifiers 
compliance  with  the  obligations  of  this  Regulation  is  obtained,  as  appropriate, 
depending on the nature and scope of the failure or violation of legal requirements.  

Suspension  of  accreditation  shall  be  lifted  if  the  Accreditation  Body  has  received 
satisfactory 
the 
requirements of this Regulation.  

the  environmental  verifier  complies  with 

information 

that 

Article 30 

Meeting of the Accreditation Bodies 

Within  the  framework  of  the  body  recognised  under  Article  14  of  Regulation  (EC) 
No xxxx/2008  the  Accreditation Bodies from all Member States shall meet  at least 
once  per  year  in  the  presence  of  a  representative  of  the  Commission  (hereinafter, 
"meeting of the Accreditation Bodies").  

The  task  of  the  meeting  of  the  Accreditation  Bodies  shall  be  to  ensure  the 
consistency of procedures relating to the following: 

(a) 

the  accreditation  of  verifiers  under  this  Regulation,  including  refusal, 
suspension and withdrawal of accreditation; 

(b) 

the supervision of activities carried out by accredited verifiers. 

The meeting of the Accreditation Bodies shall develop guidance on issues in the field 
of the competence of Accreditation Bodies. 

The meeting of the Accreditation Bodies shall adopt rules of procedure. 

The  guidance  documents  referred  to  in  paragraph  3  and  the  rules  of  procedure 
referred to in paragraph 4 shall be transmitted to the Commission. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

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Article 31 

Peer evaluation of Accreditation Bodies 

1. 

The peer evaluation with regard to accreditation of environmental verifiers under this 
Regulation  to  be  organised  by  the  body  referred  to  in  Article  30(1)  in  accordance 
with  Article  10  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  xxxx/2008,  shall  include  at  least  an 
assessment of the rules and procedures relating to the following: 

(a) 

the competence of verifiers; 

(b) 

independence, objectivity and impartiality of verifiers; 

(c) 

specification of the scope of accreditation of verifiers; 

(d) 

requirements for verifiers; 

(e) 

(f) 

supervision  process  for  verifiers  carrying  out  verification  and  validation 
activities in Member States; 

supervision  process  for  verifiers  carrying  out  verification  and  validation 
activities in third countries; 

(g)  management of the list of accredited environmental verifiers. 

2. 

3. 

The  peer  review  of  the  accreditation  systems  with  regard  to  the  implementation  of 
this Regulation shall be carried out on a regular basis, not exceeding four years. 

The  body  referred  to  in  Article  30(1)  shall  transmit  to  the  Commission  an  annual 
report of the peer evaluation.  

That report shall be made publicly available. 

CHAPTER VII 

Rules applicable to Member States 

Article 32 

Information on Competent Bodies 

Member  States  shall  inform  the  Commission  of  the  structure  and  procedures  relating  to  the 
functioning of the Competent Bodies. They shall regularly update that information.  

Article 33 

Assistance to organisations relating to compliance with legal requirement relating to the 
environment 

1. 

Member  States  shall  set  up  a  system  ensuring  that  information  and  assistance 
regarding  legal  requirements  relating  to  the  environment  in  that  Member  State  is 
provided, upon request, to organisations in the process of registration. 

2. 

The assistance shall include the following: 

(a) 

information  regarding  the  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the 
environment; 

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(b) 

(c) 

identification  of  the  competent  enforcement  authorities  for  each  legal 
requirement  relating  to  the  environment  that  has  been  identified  as  being 
applicable;  

identification  and  clarification  of  the  means  to  provide  evidence  that  the 
organisation meets the legal requirements relating to the environment that have 
been identified as being applicable; 

(d) 

establishment  of  contacts  with  the  relevant  enforcement  authorities  if 
necessary. 

Member  States  may  confer  the  task  referred  to  in  paragraphs  1  and  2  to  the 
Competent Bodies or to any other body  

Member States shall ensure that the bodies or organisations they designated pursuant 
to  paragraph  3  have  the  necessary  expertise  and  the  appropriate  resources,  both 
financial and personnel to fulfil their tasks. 

Member  States  shall  ensure  that  enforcement  authorities  reply  to  requests  from 
organisations  on  the  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the  environment  that 
fall  within  their  competence  and  provide  information  to  the  organisations  on  their 
state of compliance with these requirements.  

Member States shall ensure that competent enforcement authorities communicate as 
soon  as  possible  and  in  any  case  within  one  month  of  failure  by  registered 
organisations  to  comply  with  this  Regulation  to  the  Competent  Body  which  has 
registered the organisation. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

Article 34 

Promotion plan 

Member States shall adopt a promotion plan, which includes objectives, actions and initiatives 
to promote EMAS in general and to encourage organisations to participate in EMAS. 

Article 35 

Information 

1. 

2. 

3. 

Member States shall take appropriate measures to provide information to the public 
about the objectives and principal components of EMAS. 

Member States shall, where appropriate, in particular in cooperation with, industrial 
associations, consumer organisations, environmental organisations, trade unions and 
local institutions, use professional publications, local journals, promotion campaigns 
or any other functional means to increase general awareness of EMAS.  

Member  States  shall 
organisations about the content of this Regulation. 

take  appropriate  measures 

to  provide 

information 

to 

Article 36 

Promotion activities 

Member States shall carry out promotion activities for EMAS, including:  

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(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

the  promotion  of  the  exchange  of  knowledge  and  best  practices  on  EMAS 
among all concerned parties; 

the development of effective tools for EMAS promotion and to share them with 
organisations; 

the  provision  of  technical  support  to  organisations  in  the  definition  and 
implementation of their marketing activities; 

(4) 

the encouragement of partnerships among organisations for EMAS promotion. 

Article 37 

Promotion of participation of small organisations 

Member States shall take adequate measures to ensure the participation of small organisations 
by: 

(1) 

(2) 

facilitating access to information and support funds specially adapted to them; 

ensuring that reasonable registration fees encourage their participation; 

(3)  promoting  technical  assistance  measures,  in  particular,  in  conjunction  with 
initiatives  from  professional  or  local  points  of  contact,  local  authorities, 
chambers of commerce, trade or craft associations. 

Article 38 

Cluster and step-by-step approach 

1. 

2. 

Member  States  shall  ensure  that  local  authorities,  in  participation  with  industrial 
associations,  chambers  of  commerce  and  concerned  parties  provide  specific 
assistance to clusters of organisations that are related to each other by geographical 
proximity or business activities, to meet the requirements for registration as referred 
to in Articles 4, 5 and 6. 

Member  States  shall  develop  programmes  designed  to  encourage  organisations  to 
implement an environment management system. They shall in particular encourage a 
step-by-step approach which may eventually lead to EMAS registration. 

Those  systems  and  programmes  shall  operate  with  the  objective  of  avoiding 
unnecessary costs for participants, in particular for small organisations. 

Article 39 

EMAS and other environmental policies and instruments in the Community 

1. 

Member  States  shall  establish  a  yearly  strategy  in  conjunction  with  Competent 
Bodies and enforcement authorities in order to address how registration under EMAS 
in accordance with this Regulation: 

(a) 

can be taken into account in the development of new legislation; 

(b) 

can be used as a tool in the application and enforcement of legislation. 

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2. 

Without prejudice to Community legislation, notably competition, taxation and state 
aid  legislation,  Member  States  shall,  where  appropriate,  take  measures  facilitating 
organisations to become or remain EMAS registered. Those measures shall be taken, 
in either of the following two forms: 

(a) 

(b) 

regulatory  relief,  so  that  an  EMAS  registered  organisation  is  considered  as 
being  compliant  with  certain  legal  requirements  relating  to  the  environment 
laid down in other legal instruments, identified by the competent authorities; 

better regulation, whereby other legal instruments are modified so that burdens 
on  organisations  participating  in  EMAS  are  removed,  reduced  or  simplified 
with  a  view  to  encouraging  the  efficient  operation  of  markets  and  raise  the 
level of competitiveness. 

Article 40 

Costs and fees 

1. 

Member States shall establish a system of fees taking into account the following: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

the  costs  incurred  in  connection  with  the  provision  of  information  and 
assistance  to  organisations  by  the  bodies  designated  or  set  up  to  this  end  by 
Member States pursuant to Article 33;  

the  costs  incurred  in  connection  with  the  accreditation  and  supervision  of 
environmental verifiers and other related costs of EMAS; 

the costs for registration by Competent Bodies as well as the additional costs of 
administering 
the 
Community.  

for  organisations  outside 

registration  process 

the 

Those  fees  shall  not  exceed  a  reasonable  amount  and  shall  be  proportionate  to  the 
size of the organisation and to the work to be done.  

2. 

Member States may decide as a measure of promotion not to charge any fees. 

Article 41  

Non-compliance 

1. 

2. 

Member  States  shall  take  appropriate  legal  or  administrative  measures  in  case  of 
non-compliance with the provisions of this Regulation. 

Member  States shall  put in place effective  provisions against the use of  the  EMAS 
logo in violation of the provisions of this Regulation. 

Article 42 

Information and reporting to the Commission  

Member  States  shall  annually  report  to  the  Commission  on  the  measures  taken  pursuant  to 
this Regulation. 

In  these  reports,  Member  States  shall  take  account  the  latest  report  presented  by  the 
Commission to the European Parliament and to the Council pursuant to Article 47. 

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CHAPTER VIII 

Rules applicable to the European Commission 

Article 43 

Information 

The  Commission  shall  provide  information  to  the  public  on  the  objectives  and 
principal components of EMAS. 

The Commission shall maintain and make publicly available: 

(a) 

(b) 

a register of environmental verifiers and EMAS registered organisations; 

a database of environmental statements and environmental performance reports 
in electronic format 

Article 44 

Collaboration and coordination 

The  Commission  may  promote  collaboration  between  Member  States  in  order,  in 
particular, to come to a uniform and consistent application of the rules throughout the 
Community relating to the following: 

(a) 

registration of organisations; 

(b) 

environmental verifiers; 

(c) 

the information and assistance referred to in Article 33. 

Without prejudice to Community legislation on public procurement, the Commission 
and  other  Community  institutions  and  bodies  shall,  where  appropriate,  refer  to 
EMAS  or  equivalent  environmental  management  systems  as  contract  performance 
conditions for works and service contracts. 

Article 45  

Relationship with other environmental management systems 

Member  States  may  submit  to  the  Commission  a  written  request  for  recognition  of 
existing  environmental  management  systems,  or  parts  thereof,  that  are  certified 
according  to  appropriate  certification  procedures  recognised  at  national  or  regional 
level, as complying with corresponding requirements of this Regulation. 

Member States shall specify in their request the relevant parts of the environmental 
management systems and the corresponding requirements of this Regulation 

Member States shall provide evidence of the equivalence with this Regulation of all 
relevant parts of the environmental management system concerned. 

The  Commission  shall,  after  examination  of  the  request  referred  to  in  paragraph  1, 
and acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 49(2), recognise the 
relevant  parts  of  the  environmental  management  systems  and  recognise  the 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

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40 

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accreditation  requirements  for  the  certification  bodies  if  it  is  of  the  opinion  that  a 
Member State has: 

(a) 

specified  sufficiently  clearly  in  the  request  the  relevant  parts  of  the 
environmental  management  systems  and  the  corresponding  requirements  of 
this Regulation; 

(b)  provided  sufficient  evidence  of  the  equivalence  with  this  Regulation  of  all 

relevant parts of the environmental management system at stake. 

5. 

The  Commission  shall  publish  the  references  of  the  recognised  environmental 
management systems, including the relevant sections of EMAS referred to in Annex 
I to which they apply, and the recognised accreditation requirements in the Official 
Journal of the European Union.  

Article 46 

Development of sectoral reference documents 

The  Commission  shall  ensure  information  exchange  and  collaboration  between  Member 
States  and  other  stakeholders  on  the  best  environmental  management  practice  for  relevant 
sectors,  in  order  to  develop  sectoral  reference  documents,  including  best  environmental 
management practice and environmental performance indicators for specific sectors. 

Those  measures,  designed  to  amend  non-essential  elements  of  this  Regulation,  by 
supplementing it, shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny 
laid down in Article 49(3).  

Article 47 

Reporting 

Every five years, the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament and to the Council 
a  report  containing  information  on  the  actions  and  measures  taken  under  this  Chapter  and 
information received from the Member States pursuant to Articles 32 and 42. 

CHAPTER IX 

Final provisions 

Article 48 

Amendment of Annexes 

1. 

The Commission may amend the Annexes if necessary or appropriate, in the light of 
experience  gained  in  the  operation  of  EMAS,  in  response  to  identified  needs  for 
guidance  on  EMAS  requirements  and  in  the  light  of  any  changes  in  international 
standards  or  new  standards  which  are  of  relevance  to  the  effectiveness  of  this 
Regulation.  

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41 

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2. 

1. 

2. 

3. 

Those measures, designed to amend non-essential elements of this Regulation, shall 
be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in 
Article 49(3). 

Article 49 

Committee 

The Commission shall be assisted by a committee. 

Where  reference  is  made  to  this  paragraph,  the  advisory  procedure  laid  down  in 
Article 3 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, in compliance with Article 
7(3) and Article 8 thereof. 

Where  reference  is  made  to  this  paragraph,  Articles  5a  (1)  to  (4)  and  7  of  Council 
Decision  1999/468/EC  shall  apply,  having  regard  to  the  provisions  of  Article  8 
thereof. 

Article 50 

Revision 

The Commission shall review EMAS in the light of the experience gained during its operation 
and  international  developments.  It  shall  take  into  account  the  reports  transmitted  to  the 
European Parliament and to the Council in accordance with Article 47.  

Article 51 

Repeal and transitional provisions 

1. 

The following legal acts are repealed: 

(a)  Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council 
of  19  March  2001  allowing  voluntary  participation  by  organisations  in  a 
Community Eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS)25, 

(b)  Commission  Decision  2001/681/EC  on  guidance  for  the  implementation  of 
Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council 
of  19  March  2001  allowing  voluntary  participation  by  organisations  in  a 
Community Eco-management and audit scheme26, 

(c)  Commission Decision 2006/193/EC laying down rules, under Regulation (EC) 
No 761/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council, on the use of the 
EMAS  logo  in  the  exceptional  cases  of  transport  packaging  and  tertiary 
packaging27 

By way of derogation from paragraph 1, the second, third and fourth subparagraphs 
of this paragraph shall apply. 

OJ L 114, 24.4.2001, p. 1. 
OJ L 247 of 17 .9.2001; p. 24.  
OJ L 70, 9.3.2006, p. 63. 

2. 

25 
26 
27 

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National Accreditation Bodies and Competent Bodies set up pursuant to Regulation 
(EC)  No  761/2001  shall  continue  their  activities.  Member  States  shall  modify  the 
procedures  followed  by Accreditation  Bodies  and  Competent  Bodies  in  accordance 
with  this  Regulation.  Member  States  shall  ensure  that  these  systems  are  fully 
operational  within  six  months  following  the  date  of  entry  into  force  of  this 
Regulation. 

Organisations  registered  in  accordance  with  Regulation  (EC)  No  761/2001  shall 
remain on the EMAS register. At the time of the next verification of an organisation 
the environmental verifier shall check its compliance with the new requirements of 
this  Regulation.  If  the  next  verification  is  to  be  carried  out  sooner  than  six  months 
after  entry  into  force  of  this  Regulation,  the  date  of  the  next  verification  may  be 
extended  by  six  months  in  agreement  with  the  environmental  verifier  and  the 
Competent Bodies. 

Environmental verifiers accredited in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 
may  continue  to  perform  their  activities  in  accordance  with  the  requirements 
established by this Regulation. 

3. 

References to Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 shall be construed as references to this 
Regulation  and  be  read  in  accordance  with  the  correlation  table  set  out  in  Annex 
VIII. 

Article 52 

Entry into force 

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union. 

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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ANNEX I 

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW 

The environmental review shall cover the following areas: 

1. 

Identification of the applicable legal requirements relating to the environment.  

In  addition  to  the  establishment  of  a  list  of  applicable  legal  requirements,  the 
organisation shall also indicate how evidence that it is complying with the different 
requirements, can be provided.  

2. 

Identification  of  all  direct  and  indirect  environmental  aspects  with  a  significant 
impact on the environment, qualified and quantified as appropriate and compiling a 
register of those identified as significant; 

An  organisation  shall  consider  the  following  issues  in  assessing  the  significance  of 
an environmental aspect: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

potential to cause environmental harm 

fragility of the local, regional or global environment 

size, number, frequency and reversibility of the aspect or impact 

existence and requirements of relevant environmental legislation 

importance to the stakeholders and employees of the organisation 

(a) 

Direct environmental aspects 

Direct environmental aspects are associated with activities, products and services of 
the organisation itself over which it has direct management control. 

All organisations have to consider the direct aspects of their operations. 

Direct environmental aspects relate to, but are not limited to: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

(h) 

(i) 

Legal requirements and permit limits 

emissions to air; 

releases to water; 

production,  recycling,  reuse,  transportation  and  disposal  of  solid  and 
other wastes, particularly hazardous wastes; 

use and contamination of land; 

use of natural resources and raw materials (including energy); 

local issues (noise, vibration, odor, dust, visual appearance, etc.); 

transport issues (both for goods and services) 

risks of environmental accidents and impacts arising, or likely to arise, 
as  consequences  of  incidents,  accidents  and  potential  emergency 
situations; 

(j) 

effects on biodiversity. 

(b) 

Indirect environmental aspects 

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Indirect environmental aspects can result from the interaction of an organisation with 
third  parties  which  can  to  a  reasonable  degree  be  influenced  by  the  organisation 
seeking EMAS-registration. 

For non-industrial organisations, such as local authorities or financial institutions, it 
is  essential  that  they  also  consider  the  environmental  aspects  associated  with  their 
core business. An inventory limited to the environmental aspects of an organisation's 
site and facilities is insufficient. 

These include, but are not limited to: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

product  life  cycle  related  issues  (design,  development,  packaging, 
transportation, use and waste recovery/disposal); 

capital investments, granting loans and insurance services 

new markets; 

choice  and  composition  of  services  (e.g.  transport  or  the  catering 
trade); 

administrative and planning decisions; 

product range compositions; 

the  environmental  performance  and  practices  of  contractors, 
subcontractors and suppliers. 

Organisations must be able to demonstrate that the significant environmental aspects 
associated  with  their  procurement  procedures  have  been  identified  and  that 
significant  impacts  associated  with  these  aspects  are  addressed  within  the 
management system. 

In  the  case  of  these  indirect  environmental  aspects,  an  organisation  shall  consider 
how much influence it can have over these aspects, and what measures can be taken 
to reduce the impact. 

3. 

Description of the criteria for assessing the significance of the environmental impact 

An  organisation  shall  define  the  criteria  for  assessing  the  significance  of  the 
environmental  aspects  of  its  activities,  products  and  services,  to  determine  which 
have a significant environmental impact.  

The  criteria  developed  by  an  organisation  shall  take  into  account  Community 
legislation  and  shall  be  comprehensive,  capable  of 
independent  checking, 
reproducible and made publicly available. 

Considerations  in  establishing  the  criteria  for  assessing  the  significance  of  an 
organisation's environmental aspects may include, but are not limited to: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

information  about  the  condition  of  the  environment  to  identify 
activities, products and services of the organisation that may have an 
environmental impact; 

the  organisation's  existing  data  on  material  and  energy  inputs, 
discharges, wastes and emissions in terms of risk; 

views of interested parties; 

environmental activities of the organisation that are regulated; 

procurement activities; 

45 

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(f) 

(g) 

design,  development,  manufacturing,  distribution,  servicing,  use,  re-
use, recycling and disposal of the organisation's products; 

those  activities  of 
environmental costs, and environmental benefits. 

the  organisation  with 

the  most  significant 

In  assessing  the  significance  of  the  environmental  impacts  of  the  organisation's 
activities  the  organisation  shall  think  not  only  of  normal  operating  conditions  but 
also  of  start-up  and  shutdown  conditions  and  of  reasonably  foreseeable  emergency 
conditions. Account shall be taken of past, present and planned activities. 

Examination of all existing environmental management practices and procedures 

Evaluation of feedback from the investigation of previous incidents 

4. 

5. 

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ANNEX II 

Environmental management system requirements 

and 

additional issues to be addressed by organisations implementing EMAS 

The environmental management system requirements under EMAS are those laid down in Section 4 of 
the EN ISO 14001:2004 standard. These requirements are reproduced in the left column of the table 
below, which constitutes Part A of this Annex. 

In addition, registered organisations are required to address a number of additional issues that have a 
direct link to a number of elements of Section 4 of the EN ISO 14001:2004 standard. These additional 
requirements are listed in the right column below, which constitutes Part B of this Annex. 

Part A 

Part B 

environmental management systems requirements 
under EN ISO 14001:2004 

additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

Organisations  participating  in  the  eco-management 
and  audit  scheme  (EMAS)  shall  implement  the 
requirements  of  EN  ISO  14001:2004,  which  are 
described  in  Section  4  of  the  European  Standard28 
and are fully reproduced below: 

Environmental 

A. 
requirements 

management 

system 

A.1. General requirements 

shall 

establish, 

organisation 

The 
document, 
implement,  maintain  and  continually  improve  an 
environmental  management  system  in  accordance 
with  the  requirements  of  this  International  Standard 
and determine how it will fulfill these requirements. 

The organisation shall define and document the scope 
of its environmental management system. 

A.2. Environmental policy 

Top  management  shall  define  the  organisation’s 
environmental  policy  and  ensure  that,  within  the 
defined  scope  of  its  environmental  management 
system, it: 

28 

The use of the text reproduced in this Annex is made with the permission of CEN. The full text can be purchased from the national standard bodies, the list of 
which is given in this Annex. Any reproduction of this Annex for commercial reason is not permitted. 

EN 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

is  appropriate 

(a) 
the  nature,  scale  and 
environmental  impacts  of  its  activities,  products  and 
services; 

to 

(b) includes a commitment to continual improvement 
and prevention of pollution; 

(c) includes a commitment to comply with applicable 
legal  requirements  and  with  other  requirements  to 
which  the  organisation  subscribes  which  relate  to  its 
environmental aspects; 

(d) provides the framework for setting and reviewing 
environmental objectives and targets; 

(e) is documented, implemented and maintained; 

(f) is communicated to all persons working for or on 
behalf of the organisation; and 

(g) is available to the public. 

A.3. Planning 

A.3.1. Environmental aspects 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a procedure(s): 

(a)  to  identify  the  environmental  aspects  of  its 
activities,  products  and  services  within  the  defined 
scope  of  the  environmental  management  system  that 
it  can  control  and  those  that  it  can  influence  taking 
into account planned or new developments, or new or 
modified activities, products and services; and 

(b)  to  determine  those  aspects  that  have  or  can  have 
significant 
(i.e. 
significant environmental aspects). 

the  environment 

impact(s)  on 

The organisation shall document this information and 
keep it up to date. 

The  organisation  shall  ensure  that  the  significant 
environmental  aspects  are  taken  into  account  in 
its 
establishing, 

implementing  and  maintaining 

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environmental management system. 

A.3.2. Legal and other requirements 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a procedure(s): 

(a) to identify and have access to the applicable legal 
requirements  and  other  requirements  to  which  the 
organisation  subscribes  related  to  its  environmental 
aspects; and 

(b) to determine how these requirements apply to its 
environmental aspects. 

The  organisation  shall  ensure  that  these  applicable 
legal  requirements  and  other  requirements  to  which 
the  organisation  subscribes  are  taken  into  account  in 
its 
establishing, 
environmental management system. 

implementing  and  maintaining 

B.1. Legal compliance 

Organisations wishing to register with 
EMAS  shall  be  able  to  demonstrate 
that they: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

all 

applicable 

have  identified,  and  know  the 
implications to the organisation 
legal 
of 
requirements  relating  to  the 
environment,  identified  during 
the 
review 
environmental 
according to Annex I. 

provide  for  legal  compliance 
with  environmental  legislation, 
including  permits  and  permit 
limits; and 

have  procedures  in  place  that 
enable the organisation to meet 
these 
an 
ongoing basis. 

requirements  on 

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A.3.3. Objectives, targets and programme(s) 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain  documented  environmental  objectives  and 
targets,  at  relevant  functions  and  levels  within  the 
organisation. 

The objectives and targets shall be measurable, where 
practicable,  and  consistent  with  the  environmental 
policy,  including  the  commitments  to  prevention  of 
legal 
pollution, 
requirements  and  with  other  requirements  to  which 
the  organisation  subscribes,  and 
to  continual 
improvement. 

to  compliance  with  applicable 

When  establishing  and  reviewing  its  objectives  and 
targets,  an  organisation  shall  take  into  account  the 
legal  requirements  and  other  requirements  to  which 
the  organisation  subscribes,  and 
its  significant 
environmental  aspects.  It  shall  also  consider  its 
technological  options,  its  financial,  operational  and 
business  requirements,  and  the  views  of  interested 
parties. 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a programme(s) for achieving its objectives 
and targets. Programme(s) shall include: 

(a)  designation  of 
for  achieving 
objectives and targets at relevant functions and levels 
of the organisation; and 

responsibility 

(b) the means and time-frame by which they are to be 
achieved. 

B.2. Performance 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

that 

Organisations  shall  be  able  to 
demonstrate 
the 
management  system  and  the 
audit  procedures  address  the 
environmental 
actual 
performance 
the 
organisation with respect to the 
indirect  aspects 
direct  and 
identified  in  the  environmental 
review under Annex I. 

of 

performance 

of 
against 

the 
The 
organisation 
its 
objectives  and  targets  shall  be 
the 
evaluated  as  part  of 
management  review  process. 
The  organisation  shall  also 
commit  itself  to  the  continual 
its 
improvement 
environmental  performance.  In 
doing so, the organisation may 
local, 
its  action  on 
base 
national 
and 
regional 
environmental programmes. 

of 

to  achieve 

the 
The  means 
objectives  and  targets  cannot 
be environmental objectives. If 
the organisation comprises one 
or more sites, each of  the sites 
to  which  EMAS  applies  shall 
the 
comply 
requirements 
EMAS 
continual 
the 
including 
improvement  of  environmental 
performance  as  defined 
in 
Article 2(b) of this Regulation. 

with 

all 

of 

A.4. Implementation and operation 

A.4.1.  Resources, 
authority 

roles, 

responsibility  and 

Management shall ensure the availability of resources 
implement,  maintain  and 
essential 

to  establish, 

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organisations implementing EMAS 

environmental management systems requirements 
under EN ISO 14001:2004 
improve  the  environmental  management  system. 
Resources  include  human  resources  and  specialized 
skills,  organisational  infrastructure,  technology  and 
financial resources. 

Roles,  responsibilities  and  authorities  shall  be 
defined,  documented  and  communicated  in  order  to 
facilitate effective environmental management. 

The  organisation’s  top  management  shall  appoint  a 
specific  management 
representative(s)  who, 
irrespective  of  other  responsibilities,  shall  have 
defined roles, responsibilities and authority for: 

(a)  ensuring  that  an  environmental  management 
system is established, implemented and maintained in 
accordance with the requirements of this International 
Standard; 

(b) reporting to top management on the performance 
of the environmental management system for review, 
including recommendations for improvement. 

A.4.2. Competence, training and awareness 

B.3. Employee involvement 

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environmental management systems requirements 
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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

(1) 

(2) 

involvement 

organisation 
that 

should 
The 
active 
acknowledge 
employee 
is  a 
driving force and a prerequisite 
for  continuous  and  successful 
environmental 
improvements 
as well as being a key resource 
of 
in 
environmental  performance  as 
well  as  the  right  method  to 
environmental 
anchor 
management  and  audit  system 
in 
in  a 
successful way. 

the  organisation 

improvement 

the 

the 

of, 

and 

term 

‘employee 
The 
includes  both 
participation’ 
participation 
and 
information  to  the  individual 
employee 
his 
representatives. 
Therefore, 
there  should  be  an  employee 
participation  scheme  at  all 
levels. The organisation should 
acknowledge that commitment, 
active 
responsiveness 
support  from  the  side  of  the 
management  is  a  prerequisite 
for 
those 
processes.  In  this  context  the 
necessity  of  feedback  from  the 
management  to  the  employees 
must be stressed. 

success  of 

and 

the 

The  organisation  shall  ensure  that  any  person(s) 
performing  tasks  for  it  or  on  its  behalf  that  have  the 
to  cause  a  significant  environmental 
potential 
impact(s)  identified  by  the  organisation  is  (are) 
competent  on  the  basis  of  appropriate  education, 
training  or  experience,  and  shall  retain  associated 
records. 

The  organisation  shall 
training  needs 
associated  with  its  environmental  aspects  and  its 
environmental  management  system.  It  shall  provide 
training or take other action to meet these needs, and 

identify 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

shall retain associated records. 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a procedure(s) to make persons working for 
it or on its behalf aware of: 

the 

importance  of  conformity  with 

(a) 
the 
environmental  policy  and  procedures  and  with  the 
requirements  of 
the  environmental  management 
system; 

(b)  the  significant  environmental  aspects  and  related 
actual or potential impacts associated with their work, 
and the environmental benefits of improved personal 
performance; 

(c)  their  roles  and  responsibilities  in  achieving 
conformity  with 
the 
environmental management system; and 

requirements 

the 

of 

(d)  the  potential  consequences  of  departure  from 
specified procedures. 

(3) 

the 

involved 

In  addition 
these 
to 
requirements,  employees  shall 
be 
the  process 
in 
aimed at continually improving 
organisation’s 
the 
environmental 
performance 
through: 

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environmental management systems requirements 
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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

initial 
the 
review, 
environmental 
the 
the  analysis  of 
in 
and 
status  quo 
collecting and verifying 
information, 

the  establishment  and 
implementation  of  an 
environmental 
management  and  audit 
improving 
system 
environmental 
performance, 

and 

environmental 
to  gather 
committees 
information 
to 
ensure  the  participation 
environmental 
of 
officer/management 
representatives 
employees  and 
representatives, 

and 
their 

joint  working  groups 
for  the  environmental 
action  programme  and 
environmental auditing, 

the  elaboration  of  the 
environmental 
statements. 

(4) 

such 

forms 

of 
Appropriate 
the 
as 
participation 
suggestion-book 
system  or 
project-based  group  works  or 
committees 
environmental 
should  be  used 
this 
purpose.  Organisations  shall 
take  note  of  Commission 
guidance  on  best  practice  in 
they  so 
this 
request, 
employee 
any 
representatives  shall  also  be 
involved. 

field.  Where 

for 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

A.4.3. Communication 

to 

With  regard 
its  environmental  aspects  and 
environmental  management  system,  the  organisation 
shall 
a 
establish, 
procedure(s) for: 

and  maintain 

implement 

(a) internal communication among the various levels 
and functions of the organisation; 

receiving,  documenting  and 

to 
(b) 
relevant  communication  from  external  interested 
parties. 

responding 

organisation 

shall 
externally 

decide  whether 
its 

to 
The 
significant 
communicate 
environmental  aspects,  and  shall  document 
its 
decision.  If  the  decision  is  to  communicate,  the 
implement  a 
shall  establish  and 
organisation 
method(s) for this external communication. 

about 

B.4. Communication 

(1) 

Organisations  shall  be  able  to 
demonstrate  an  open  dialogue 
the  public  and  other 
with 
including 
interested  parties 
local 
and 
communities 
customers  with  regard  to  the 
environmental  impact  of  their 
activities, 
and 
services in order to identify the 
public’s  and  other  interested 
parties’ concerns. 

products 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

provision 

transparency  and 
Openness, 
periodic 
of 
environmental  information  are 
key  factors  in  differentiating 
EMAS  from  other  schemes. 
Those 
also 
important  for  the  organisation 
in  building  confidence  with 
interested parties. 

factors 

are 

EMAS  provides  flexibility  to 
allow  organisations  to  target 
relevant information to specific 
audiences  while  ensuring  that 
all  information  is  available  to 
those who require it. 

(2) 

(3) 

system 

A.4.4. Documentation 

The 
documentation shall include: 

environmental 

management 

(a) the environmental policy, objectives and targets; 

(b)  description  of  the  scope  of  the  environmental 
management system; 

(c)  description  of 
environmental  management 
and 
interaction, and reference to related documents; 

the  main  elements  of 
system 

the 
their 

(d)  documents,  including  records,  required  by  this 
International Standard; and 

(e)  documents,  including  records,  determined  by  the 
organisation  to  be  necessary  to  ensure  the  effective 
planning,  operation  and  control  of  processes  that 
relate to its significant environmental aspects. 

A.4.5. Control of documents 

by 

the 

required 

environmental 
Documents 
management  system  and  by 
International 
Standard  shall  be  controlled.  Records  are  a  special 
in 
type  of  document  and  shall  be  controlled 
accordance  with  the  requirements  given  in  point 

this 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
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A.5.4. 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a procedure(s) to: 

(a) approve documents for adequacy prior to issue; 

(b)  review  and  update  as  necessary  and  re-approve 
documents, 

(c) ensure that changes and the current revision status 
of documents are identified; 

(d)  ensure 
documents are available at points of use; 

that  relevant  versions  of  applicable 

(e) ensure that documents remain legible and readily 
identifiable; 

that  documents  of  external  origin 
(f)  ensure 
determined  by  the  organisation  to  be  necessary  for 
the  planning  and  operation  of  the  environmental 
their 
system  are 
management 
distribution controlled; and 

identified  and 

(g) prevent the unintended use of obsolete documents 
and  apply  suitable  identification  to  them  if  they  are 
retained for any purpose. 

A.4.6. Operational control 

identify  and  plan 

The  organisation  shall 
those 
operations  that  are  associated  with  the  identified 
significant  environmental  aspects  consistent  with  its 
environmental policy, objectives and targets, in order 
to  ensure  that  they  are  carried  out  under  specified 
conditions, by: 

(a)  establishing,  implementing  and  maintaining  a 
documented  procedure(s)  to  control  situations  where 
their  absence  could  lead  to  deviation  from  the 
environmental policy, objectives and targets; and 

stipulating 

(b) 
procedure(s); and 

the  operating  criteria 

in 

the 

(c)  establishing, 

implementing  and  maintaining 

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organisations implementing EMAS 

environmental management systems requirements 
under EN ISO 14001:2004 
identified  significant 
the 
procedures  related 
environmental aspects of goods and services used by 
the  organisation  and  communicating  applicable 
procedures  and  requirements  to  suppliers,  including 
contractors. 

to 

A.4.7. Emergency preparedness and response 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain  a  procedure(s) 
identify  potential 
emergency situations and potential accidents that can 
have an impact(s) on the environment and how it will 
respond to them. 

to 

The  organisation  shall  respond  to  actual  emergency 
situations  and  accidents  and  prevent  or  mitigate 
associated adverse environmental impacts. 

The organisation shall periodically review and, where 
necessary,  revise  its  emergency  preparedness  and 
response  procedures, 
the 
in  particular,  after 
occurrence of accidents or emergency situations. 

The  organisation  shall  also  periodically  test  such 
procedures where practicable. 

A.5. Checking 

A.5.1. Monitoring and measurement 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a procedure(s) to monitor and measure, on a 
regular basis, the key characteristics of its operations 
that can have a significant environmental impact. The 
procedure(s)  shall 
the  documenting  of 
to  monitor  performance,  applicable 
information 
the 
operational  controls  and  conformity  with 
organisation’s environmental objectives and targets. 

include 

The  organisation  shall  ensure  that  calibrated  or 
verified  monitoring  and  measurement  equipment  is 
used  and  maintained  and  shall  retain  associated 
records. 

A.5.2. Evaluation of compliance 

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the  organisation 

to 
A.5.2.1.  Consistent  with 
establish, 
compliance, 
implement 
for 
periodically  evaluating  compliance  with  applicable 
legal requirements. 

its  commitment 
shall 
a  procedure(s) 

and  maintain 

The  organisation  shall  keep  records  of  the  results  of 
the periodic evaluations. 

A.5.2.2.  The  organisation  shall  evaluate  compliance 
with  other  requirements  to  which  it  subscribes.  The 
organisation  may  wish  to  combine  this  evaluation 
with the evaluation of legal compliance referred to in 
A.5.2.1 or to establish a separate procedure(s). 

The  organisation  shall  keep  records  of  the  results  of 
the periodic evaluations. 

A.5.3.  Non-conformity,  corrective  action  and 
preventive action 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain  a  procedure(s)  for  dealing  with  actual  and 
potential  non-conformity(ies) 
taking 
corrective  action  and  preventive  action.  The 
procedure(s) shall define requirements for: 

and 

for 

(a)  identifying  and  correcting  non-conformity(ies) 
and  taking  action(s)  to  mitigate  their  environmental 
impacts; 

(b)  investigating  non-conformity(ies),  determining 
their  cause(s)  and  taking  actions  in  order  to  avoid 
their recurrence; 

(c)  evaluating  the  need  for  action(s)  to  prevent  non-
conformity(ies) and implementing appropriate actions 
designed to avoid their occurrence; 

(d)  recording  the  results  of  corrective  action(s)  and 
preventive action(s) taken; and 

(e) reviewing the effectiveness of corrective action(s) 
and preventive action(s) taken. Actions taken shall be 
appropriate to the magnitude of the problems and the 
environmental impacts encountered. 

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organisations implementing EMAS 

The  organisation  shall  ensure  that  any  necessary 
changes  are  made  to  environmental  management 
system documentation. 

A.5.4. Control of records 

The organisation shall establish and maintain records 
as  necessary  to  demonstrate  conformity  to  the 
requirements  of 
its  environmental  management 
system  and  of  this  International  Standard,  and  the 
results achieved. 

The  organisation  shall  establish,  implement  and 
maintain a procedure(s) for the identification, storage, 
retention  and  disposal  of 
protection, 
records. 

retrieval, 

Records shall be and remain legible, identifiable and 
traceable. 

A.5.5. Internal audit 

The  organisation  shall  ensure  that  internal  audits  of 
the environmental management system are conducted 
at planned intervals to: 

determine  whether 

(a) 
management system: 

the 

environmental 

conforms 
- 
environmental 
requirements of this International Standard, and 

arrangements 
including 

planned 
management 

to 

for 
the 

-  has  been  properly  implemented  and  is  maintained; 
and 

(b)  provide  information  on  the  results  of  audits  to 
management. 

Audit  programme(s)  shall  be  planned,  established, 
implemented  and  maintained  by  the  organisation, 
taking 
environmental 
importance  of  the  operation(s)  concerned  and  the 
results of previous audits. 

consideration 

into 

the 

Audit procedure(s) shall be established, implemented 

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additional issues to be addressed by 
organisations implementing EMAS 

and maintained that address: 

-  the  responsibilities  and  requirements  for  planning 
and conducting audits, reporting results and retaining 
associated records, 

- the determination of audit criteria, scope, frequency 
and methods. 

Selection  of  auditors  and  conduct  of  audits  shall 
ensure  objectivity  and  the  impartiality  of  the  audit 
process. 

A.6. Management review 

to  ensure 

Top  management  shall  review  the  organisation’s 
environmental  management  system,  at  planned 
intervals, 
its  continuing  suitability, 
adequacy  and  effectiveness.  Reviews  shall  include 
assessing opportunities for improvement and the need 
for  changes 
the  environmental  management 
system,  including  the  environmental  policy  and 
environmental objectives and targets. 

to 

Records of the management reviews shall be retained. 

Input to management reviews shall include: 

(a)  results  of  internal  audits  and  evaluations  of 
compliance  with  legal  requirements  and  with  other 
requirements to which the organisation subscribes; 

(b)  communication(s) 
parties, including complaints; 

from  external 

interested 

(c) 
the 
organisation; 

environmental 

performance 

of 

the 

(d)  the  extent  to  which  objectives  and  targets  have 
been met; 

(e) status of corrective and preventive actions; 

(f)  follow-up  actions  from  previous  management 
reviews; 

(g)  changing  circumstances,  including  developments 

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legal  and  other  requirements  related 

in 
environmental aspects; and 

to 

its 

(h) recommendations for improvement. 

The  outputs  from  management  reviews  shall  include 
any decisions and actions related to possible changes 
to environmental policy, objectives, targets and other 
elements  of  the  environmental  management  system, 
consistent  with 
to  continual 
improvement. 

the  commitment 

List of national standard bodies 

IBN/BIN 

BE: 
Instituut voor Normalisatie) 

(Institut  Belge  de  Normalisation/Belgisch 

CZ: ČNI (Český normalizační institut) 

DK: DS (Dansk Standard) 

DE: DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung e.V.)  

EE: EVS (Eesti Standardikeskus) 

EL: ELOT (Ελληνικός Οργανισµός Τυποποίησης) 

ES:  AENOR  (Asociacion  Espanola  de  Normalizacion  y 
Certificacion) 

FR: AFNOR (Association Française de Normalisation) 

IEL: NSAI (National Standards Authority of Ireland) 

IT: UNI (Ente Nazionale Italiano di Unificazione) 

CY: Κυπριακός Οργανισµός Προώθησης Ποιότητας 

LV: LVS (Latvijas Standarts) 

LT: LST (Lietuvos standartizacijos departamentas) 

LU: SEE (Service de l’Energie de l’Etat) (Luxembourg) 

HU: MSZT (Magyar Szabványügyi Testület) 

MT:  MSA  (Awtorita`  Maltija  dwar  l-Istandards  /  Malta 
Standards Authority) 

NL: NEN (Nederlands Normalisatie-Instituut) 

AT: ON (Österreichisches Normungsinstitut) 

PL: PKN (Polski Komitet Normalizacyjny) 

PT: IPQ (Instituto Português da Qualidade) 

SI: SIST (Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo) 

SK: SÚTN (Slovenský ústav technickej normalizácie) 

FI: SFS (Suomen Standardisoimisliitto r.y) 

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SE: SIS (Swedish Standards Institute) 

UK: BSI (British Standards Institution).” 

EN 

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ANNEX III 

INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT 

A 

1. 

AUDIT PROGRAMME AND AUDIT FREQUENCY 

Audit programme 

The  audit  programme  shall  guarantee  that  the  management  of  the  organisation  is 
provided  with  the  information  it  needs  to  review  the  organisation's  environmental 
performance and the effectiveness of the environmental management system, and be 
able to demonstrate that they are under control. 

2. 

Objectives of the audit programme 

The  objectives  shall  include,  in  particular,  assessing  the  management  systems  in 
place,  and  determining  conformity  with  the  organisation’s  policy  and  programme, 
which shall include compliance with relevant environmental regulatory requirements. 

3. 

Scope of the audit programme 

The overall scope of the individual audits, or of each stage of an audit cycle where 
appropriate, shall be clearly defined and shall explicitly specify the: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

subject areas covered; 

activities to be audited; 

environmental criteria to be considered; 

period covered by the audit. 

Environmental  audit  includes  assessment  of  the  factual  data  necessary  to  evaluate 
performance. 

4. 

Audit frequency 

The  audit  or  audit  cycle  which  covers  all  activities  of  the  organisation  shall  be 
completed, as appropriate, at intervals of no longer than 3 years. The frequency with 
which any activity is audited will vary depending on the 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

nature, scale and complexity of the activities; 

significance of associated environmental impacts; 

importance and urgency of the problems detected by previous audits; 

history of environmental problems. 

More  complex  activities  with  a  more  significant  environmental  impact  shall  be 
audited more frequently. 

The organisation shall carry out audits at least on an annual basis, as this will help to 
demonstrate to the organisation’s management and the environmental verifier that it 
is in control of its significant environmental aspects. 

The organisation shall carry out audits regarding  

(a) 

(b) 

the environmental performance of the organisation and 

the  organisation's  compliance  with  applicable  legal  obligations 
relating to the environment 

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B: 

AUDIT ACTIVITIES 

Audit  activities  shall  include  discussions  with  personnel,  inspection  of  operating 
conditions  and  equipment  and  reviewing  of  records,  written  procedures  and  other 
relevant  documentation,  with  the  objective  of  evaluating  the  environmental 
performance  of  the  activity  being  audited  to  determine  whether  it  meets  the 
applicable standards, regulations or objectives and targets set and whether the system 
in place to manage environmental responsibilities is effective and appropriate. Inter 
alia, spot-checking of compliance with these criteria should be used to determine the 
effectiveness of the entire management system. 

The following steps, in particular, shall be included in the audit process: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

understanding of the management systems; 

assessing strengths and weaknesses of the management systems; 

gathering relevant evidence; 

evaluating audit findings; 

preparing audit conclusions; 

reporting audit findings and conclusions. 

C: 

REPORTING AUDIT FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS 

The fundamental objectives of a written audit report are: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

to document the scope of the audit; 

to  provide  the  management  with  information  on  the  state  of 
compliance  with  the  organisations’  environmental  policy  and  the 
environmental progress of the organisation; 

to provide the management with information on the effectiveness and 
reliability  of  the  arrangements  for  monitoring  environmental  impacts 
of the organisation; 

(d) 

to demonstrate the need for corrective action, where appropriate.  

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ANNEX IV 

ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING 

A. 

INTRODUCTION 

Environmental  information  shall  be  presented  in  a  clear  and  coherent  manner  in 
electronic form or in printed form. 

B. 

ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT 

The  environmental  statement  shall  contain  at  least  the  elements  and  shall  meet  the 
minimum requirements as set out below: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

(h) 

a  clear  and  unambiguous  description  of  the  organisation  registering 
under  EMAS  and  a  summary  of  its  activities,  products  and  services 
and its relationship to any parent organisations as appropriate; 

the environmental policy and a brief description of the environmental 
management system of the organisation; 

a  description  of  all  the  significant  direct  and  indirect  environmental 
aspects  which  result  in  significant  environmental  impacts  of  the 
organisation and an explanation of the nature of the impacts as related 
to these aspects (Annex I.2); 

a description of the environmental objectives and targets in relation to 
the significant environmental aspects and impacts; 

a  summary  of  the  data  available  on  the  performance  of  the 
organisation  against  its  environmental  objectives  and  targets  with 
respect to its significant environmental impacts. Reporting shall be on 
the  core  indicators  and  on  other  relevant  existing  environmental 
performance indicators as set out under section D. 

factors 

regarding  environmental  performance 

other 
including 
performance  against  legal  provisions  with  respect  to  their  significant 
environmental impacts; 

a  description  of  the  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the 
environment and evidence of compliance with these requirements; 

the name and accreditation number of the environmental verifier and 
the date of validation. 

C. 

ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE REPORT 

The  environmental  performance  report  shall  contain  at  least  the  elements  and  shall 
meet the minimum requirements as set out below: 

(a) 

a  summary  of  the  data  available  on  the  performance  of  the 
organisation  against  its  environmental  objectives  and  targets  with 
respect to its significant environmental impacts. Reporting shall be on 
the  core  indicators  and  on  other  relevant  existing  environmental 
performance indicators as set out under section D. 

EN 

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(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

factors 

regarding  environmental  performance 

other 
including 
performance  against  legal  provisions  with  respect  to  their  significant 
environmental impacts; 

a  description  of  the  applicable  legal  requirements  relating  to  the 
environment and evidence of compliance with these requirements; 

the name and accreditation number of the environmental verifier and 
the date of validation. 

D. 

1. 

CORE 
PERFORMANCE INDICATORS 

INDICATORS  AND  OTHER  RELEVANT  EXISTING  ENVIRONMENTAL 

Introduction 

Organisations  shall  report,  both 
the 
environmental performance report, on the core indicators insofar as these relate to the 
direct  environmental  aspects  of  the  organisation  and  other  relevant  existing 
environmental performance indicators as set out below. 

the  environmental  statement  and 

in 

2. 

Core indicators 

(a) 

Core  indicators  shall  apply  to  all  types  of  organisations.  They  focus  on 
performance in the following key environmental areas: 

Energy efficiency; 

Material efficiency; 

Water 

Waste 

Biodiversity 

and Emissions 

(b) 

Each core indicator is composed of: 

(i) 

a  figure  A  indicating  the  total  annual  input/impact  in  the  given 
field; 

(ii) 

a figure B indicating the overall annual output of the organisation;  

(iii)  and a figure R indicating the ratio A/B. 

Each organisation shall report on all 3 elements for each indicator. 

The indication of the total annual input/impact in the given field, figure A, needs to 

be reported as follows: 

(i) 

on Energy efficiency 

* 

* 

concerning  the  "total  direct  energy  use"  shall  indicate  the  total 
annual  energy  consumption,  expressed  in  Tons  of  oil  equivalent 
(toe); 

concerning the "total renewable energy use" shall indicate the total 
annual  energy  (electricity  and  heat)  consumption  produced  from 
Renewable  Energy  Sources,  expressed  in  Tons  of  oil  equivalent 
(toe). 

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(ii)  on Material efficiency 

* 

concerning  the  "annual  mass-flow  of  different  materials  used" 
(excluding energy carriers and water), expressed in Tons. 

(iii)  on Water 

* 

concerning  the  "total  annual  water  consumption",  expressed  in 
m³. 

(iv)  on Waste 

* 

concerning  the  "total  annual  generation  of  waste",  expressed  in 
Tons 

(v)  on Biodiversity 

* 

concerning the "use of land", expressed in m² 

(vi)  on Emissions 

* 

concerning  the  "total  annual  emission  of  greenhouse  gases", 
expressed in Tons of CO2 equivalent. 

The indication of the overall annual output of the organisation, figure B, is the same 
for all fields, but is adapted to the different types of organisations, depending on their 
type of activity. In particular, it distinguishes between organisations working in the 
production  sector  (industry),  where  it  shall  indicate  the  total  annual  gross  value-
added expressed in Million € (Mio€) or, in the case of small organisations the total 
annual  turnover  or  number  of  employees  and  organisations  in  the  non-production 
sectors (administration/services), where it shall relate to the size of the organisation 
expressed in number of employees. 

3. 

Other relevant environmental performance indicators  

Each organisation shall also report annually on its performance relating to the more 
specific  environmental  aspects  as  identified  in  its  environmental  statement  and, 
where available, take account of and refer to sectoral reference documents as referred 
to in Article 46 of this Regulation. 

In doing so,  organisations may choose  to  use other  relevant existing  environmental 
performance indicators, making sure that the indicators chosen 

(i) 

give an accurate appraisal of the organisations performance; 

(ii) 

are understandable and unambiguous; 

(iii)  allow for a year on year comparison to assess the development of 

the environmental performance of the organisation; 

(iv)  allow for comparison with sector, national or regional benchmarks 

as appropriate; 

(v) 

allow for comparison with regulatory requirements as appropriate. 

E. PUBLIC AVAILABILITY 

The  organisation  shall  be  able  to  demonstrate  to  the  environmental  verifier  that 
anybody  interested  in  the  organisation's  environmental  performance  can  easily  and 
freely be given access to the information required above under points B to D. 

EN 

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F. LOCAL ACCOUNTABILITY 

Organisations  registering  under  EMAS  may  wish  to  produce  one  corporate 
environmental statement or environmental performance report, covering a number of 
different geographic locations. 

As the intention of EMAS is to ensure local accountability, organisations shall ensure 
that  the  significant  environmental  impacts  of  each  site  are  clearly  identified  and 
reported  within 
the  corporate 
the  corporate  environmental  statement  or 
environmental performance report. 

EN 

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ANNEX V 

EMAS LOGO 

REG.NO.  

•  in three colours (Pantone No 355 Green; Pantone No 109 Yellow; Pantone No 286 Blue); 

The logo shall be used either: 

•  in black on white; or 

•  in white on black. 

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ANNEX VI 

Information Requirements for Registration 

(information to be provided when applicable) 

1. ORGANISATION 

Name 

Address 

Town 

Postal Code 

Country/land/region/Autonomous Community 

Contact person 

Telephone 

FAX 

Email 

Website 

Registration number 

Registration date 

Suspension date of registration 

Deletion date of registration 

Date of the next environmental statement 

Date of the next environmental performance report 

NACE Code of activities 

Number of employees 

Turnover or annual balance sheet 

2. SITE 

Name 

Address 

Postal Code 

Town 

Country land/region/Autonomous Community 

Contact person 

Telephone 

FAX 

Email 

Website 

Registration number 

Date of registration 

Suspension date of registration 

Deletion date of registration 

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Date of the next environmental statement 

Date of the next environmental performance report 

NACE Code of activities 

Number of Employees 

Turnover/ or annual balance sheet 

3. ACCREDITED VERIFIER 

Name of verifier 

Address 

Postal Code 

Town 

Country/land/region/Autonomous Community 

Telephone 

FAX 

Email 

Registration number of accreditation 

Scope of accreditation (NACE Codes) 

Accreditation Body 

Done at ... on .../.../200 

Signature of the representative of the organisation 

EN 

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Verifier's declaration on verification and validation activities 

ANNEX VII 

……………………...........................................................................................…………(name). 

with EMAS verifier registration number ………………………………………….………….. 

accredited for the scope ........................................................................................ (NACE Code) 

declares  to  have  verified  whether  the  site(s)  or  the  whole  organisation  as  indicated  in  the 
environmental  statement  /  environmental  performance  report  (*)  of  the  organisation 
……………………………(name) 

with registration number (if available) …………………………………………………………. 

meet all requirements of Regulation (EC) No XXX/[year] of the European Parliament and of 
the Council of [date] allowing voluntary  participation by  organisation in a  Community eco-
management and audit scheme (EMAS). 

By signing this declaration, I declare that: 

–  the  verification  and  validation  has  been  carried  out  in  full  compliance  with  the 

requirements of this Regulation 

–  there is no evidence of non compliance with applicable legal requirements relating to the 

environment. 

–  the  data  and  information  of  the  environmental  statement/the  environmental  performance 
report (*) of the organisation/site (*) reflect a reliable, credible and correct image of all the 
organisations’/sites'  (*)  activities,  within  the  scope  mentioned  in  the  environmental 
statement. 

Done at ... on .../.../200…. 

Signature  

(*) : cross when non-applicable. 

EN 

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ANNEX VIII 

CORRELATION TABLE 

Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 

this Regulation 

Article 1 (1)  

Article 1 (2) (a)  

Article 1 (2) (b) 

Article 1 (2) (c)  

Article 1 (2) (d)  

Article 2 (a)  

Article 2 (b)  

Article 2 (c)  

Article 2 (d)  

Article 2 (e)  

Article 2 (f)  

Article 2 (g)  

Article 2 (h)  

Article 2 (i)  

Article 2 (j)  

Article 2 (k)  

Article 2 (l)  

Article 2 (l) (i)  

Article 2 (l) (ii)  

Article 2 (m)  

Article 2 (n)  

Article 2 (o)  

Article 2 (p)  

Article 1 

- 

- 

- 

- 

Article 2 (1) 

- 

Article 2 (2) 

Article 2 (4) 

- 

Article 2 (5) 

Article 2 (6) 

Article 2 (7) 

Article 2 (8) 

Article 2 (9) 

Article 2 (10) 

Article 2 (12) 

- 

- 

- 

Article 2 (13) 

Article 2 (15) 

- 

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Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 

this Regulation 

Article 2 (q)  

Article 2 (r)  

Article 2 (16) 

- 

Article 2 (s) 1st sentence 

Article 2 (17) 

Article 2 (s) 2nd - 4th sentence 

- 

Article 2 (t)  

Article 2 (u)  

Article 3 (1)  

Article 3 (2) (a) 1st sentence 

Article 3 (2) (a) 2nd sentence 

Article 3 (2) (b)  

Article 3 (2) (c)  

Article 3 (2) (d)  

Article 3 (2) (e)  

Article 3 (3) (a)  

Article 2 (18) 

- 

- 

Article 4 (1) 

Article 4 (3) 

Article 4 (6) 

Article 4 (7) 

Article 4 (8) 

Article 5 (2) 1st paragraph; Article 6 (3) 

Article 6 (1) (a) 

Article 3 (3) (b) 1st sentence 

Article 6 (1) (b) - (d) 

Article 3 (3) (b) 2nd sentence 

Article 7 (1) 

Article 4 (1)  

Article 4 (2) 

Article 4 (3) 

Article 4 (4) 

Article 4 (5) 1st sentence 

Article 4 (5) 2nd sentence 

Article 4 (6) 

Article 4 (7) 

- 

51 (2) 

- 

- 

Article 26 (1) 

Article 26 (2) 

Article 42 

- 

Article 4 (8) 1st paragraph 

Article 30 (1) 

EN 

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Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 

this Regulation 

Article 4 (8) 2nd paragraph 

Article 30 (3) + (5) 

Article  4  (8)  3rd  paragraph,  1st  and  2nd 
sentence 

Article 31 (1) 

Article 4 (8) 3rd paragraph last sentence 

Article 31 (3) 

Article 5 (1) 

Article 5 (2) 

Article 5 (3) 1st sentence 

Article 11 (1) 1st sentence 

Article 11 (3) 

Article 12 (1) 

Article 5 (3) 2nd sentence, 1st indent 

Article 12 (1) (a) 

Article 5 (3) 2nd sentence, 2nd indent 

Article 12 (1) (b) 

Article 5 (4) 

Article 11 (1) 2nd sentence 

Article 5 (5) 1st sentence 

Article 15 (1) 

Article 5 (5) 2nd sentence 

Article 15 (3) 1st sentence 

Article 5 (5) 3rd sentence  

Article 16 (1) 

Article 5 (5) 4th sentence  

Article 15 (3) 2nd and 3rd sentence 

Article 6 (1) 

Article 13 (1) 

Article 6 (1), 1st indent 

Article 6 (1), 2nd indent 

Article 6 (1), 3rd indent 

Article 6 (1), 4th indent 

Article 13 (2) (a) + Article 5 (2) (a) 

Article 13 (2) (a) + Article 5 (2) (c) 

Article 13 (2) (a) + Article 5 (2) (d) 

Article 13 (2) (c) 

Article 6 (1), last sentence 

Article 13 (2) 1st sentence 

Article 6 (2) 

Article 6 (3), 1st indent 

Article 6 (3), 2nd indent 

Article 6 (3), 3rd indent 

Article 6 (3), last sentence 

Article 6 (4), 1st paragraph 

Article 14 (3) 

Article 14 (4) (a) 

Article 14 (4) (b) 

Article 14 (4) (c) 

Article 14 (8) 

Article 14 (2) 

EN 

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Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 

this Regulation 

Article 6 (4), 2nd paragraph 

Article 6 (5), 1st sentence 

Article 6 (5), 2nd sentence 

Article 6 (6) 

Article 7 (1) 

Article 7 (2), 1st sentence 

Article 7 (2), 2nd sentence 

Article 14 (5) 

Article 14 (7) 

Article 14 (9) - (10) 

Article 14 (11) 

Article 29 (6) 

Article 12 (2) 

Article 12 (3) 

Article 7 (3) 

Article 43 (2) (a) + (b) 

Article 8 (1), 1st sentence 

Article 8 (1), 2nd sentence 

Article 8 (2) (a) 

Article 8 (2) (b) 

Article 8 (2) (c) 

Article 8 (2) (d)  

Article 8 (2) (e)  

Article 8 (3) (a) 

Article 10 (1) 

Article 10(2) 

Article 10 (4) 

- 

- 

- 

Article 10 (4) 

- 

Article 8 (3) (b) 1st sentence 

Article 10 (4) 

Article 8 (3) last paragraph  

- 

Article 9 (1) 1st paragraph 

Article 9 (1) (a) 

Article 9 (1) (b) 

Article 9 (1) last paragraph 

Article 9 (2) 

Article 10 (1) (a)  

Article 10 (1) (b)  

Article 4 (3) ;  

Article 45 (4) 

Article 45 (4) 

Article 45 (5) 

- 

- 

- 

78 

EN 

   EN 

 
Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 

this Regulation 

Article 10 (1) (c) 

- 

Article 10 (2), 1st paragraph 

Article 39 (1) and (2) 

Article 10 (2), 2nd paragraph, 1st sentence 

Article 42 

Article 10 (2), 2nd paragraph, 2nd sentence  Article 47 

Article 11 (1), 1st paragraph 

Article 11 (1), 1st indent  

Article 11 (1), 2nd indent 

Article 11 (1), 3rd indent 

Article 37 

Article 37 (a) 

Article 37 (c) 

Article 37 (b) 

Article 11 (1), 2nd paragraph, 1st sentence 

Article 38 (1) 

Article 11 (1), 2nd paragraph, 2nd sentence 

- 

Article 11 (1), 2nd paragraph, 3rd sentence  Article 38 (2) 

Article 11 (1), 2nd paragraph, 4th sentence  Article 38 (3) 

Article 11 (2) 

Article 44 (2) 

Article 11 (3), 1st sentence 

Article 42, 1st sentence 

Article 11 (3), 2nd sentence 

Article 12 (1) (a)  

Article 12 (1) (b)  

Article 47 

Article 35 (3) 

Article 35 (1) 

Article 12 (1) last paragraph 

Article 35 (2) 

Article 12 (2) 

Article 12 (3) 

Article 13 

Article 14 (1) 

Article 14 (2) 

Article 14 (3) 

Article 15 (1) 

Article 42 

- 

Article 41 

Article 48 (1) 

- 

- 

Article 50 

EN 

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Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 

this Regulation 

Article 15 (2) 

Article 15 (3) 

Article 16 (1) 

Article 16 (2) 

Article 17 (1) 

Article 17 (2)  

Article 17 (3) 

Article 17 (4) 

Article 17 (5) 

Article 18 1st sentence 

Article 18 2nd sentence 

Article 48 

- 

Article 40 (1) 

Article 42 

- 

Article 51 (2) 

Article 51 (2) 

Article 51 (2) 

- 

Article 52 (1) 

Article 52 last sentence 

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LEGISLATIVE FINANCIAL STATEMENT FOR PROPOSALS HAVING A 
BUDGETARY IMPACT EXCLUSIVELY LIMITED TO THE REVENUE SIDE 

1. 

NAME OF THE PROPOSAL: 

Regulation  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  allowing  voluntary 
participation  by  organisations  in  a  Community  eco-management  and  audit  scheme 
(EMAS) 

2. 

ABM / ABB FRAMEWORK 

Policy Area(s) concerned and associated Activity/Activities: 

Environment (ABB Code 0703: implementation of Community environmental policy 
and legislation). 

3. 

3.1. 

BUDGET LINES 

Budget  lines  (operational  lines  and  related  technical  and  administrative 
assistance lines (ex- B..A lines)) including headings: 

07 01 04 01: LIFE+ (Financial Instrument for the Environment — 2007 to 2013) — 
Expenditure on administrative management  

07 03 07: LIFE+ (Financial Instrument for the Environment — 2007 to 2013) 

3.2. 

Duration of the action and of the financial impact: 

The  action  (EMAS  Regulation)  is  expected  to  come  into  force  in  2009.  For  the 
period  2009  –  2013,  operational  expenditure  will  be  covered  under  the  LIFE  + 
Financial instrument. 

3.3. 

Budgetary characteristics 

Budget 
line 

07010401 

070307 

Type of expenditure 

New 

EFTA 
contribution 

Contributions 
from applicant 
countries 

Heading in 
financial 
perspective 

Non-
comp 

Non-
comp 

Non-
diff29 

NO 

NO 

YES 

No 2 

Diff/ 

NO 

NO 

YES 

No 2 

29 

Non-differentiated appropriations hereafter referred to as NDA 

EN 

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4. 

SUMMARY OF RESOURCES 

4.1. 

Financial Resources 

4.1.1. 

Summary of commitment appropriations (CA) and payment appropriations (PA) 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Expenditure type 

Section 
no. 

2009  2010

2011

2012

2013 

2009-
2013 

Operational expenditure30 

Commitment Appropriations 
(CA) 

8.1. 

Payment 
(PA) 

Appropriations 

a 

b 

1.230  1.400 

1.700 

1.700 

1.700 

7.730 

Administrative expenditure within reference amount31 

Technical  &  administrative 
assistance (NDA) 

8.2.4. 

c 

TOTAL REFERENCE AMOUNT 

Commitment 
Appropriations 

Payment Appropriations 

a+c

b+c

0.200  0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

1.000 

1.430  1.600 

1.900 

1.900 

1.900 

8.730 

Administrative expenditure not included in reference amount32 

Human 
associated 
(NDA) 

resources 

and 
expenditure 

Administrative  costs,  other 
than  human  resources  and 
not 
associated 
included 
reference 
in 
amount (NDA) 

costs, 

TOTAL CA including cost 
of Human Resources 

TOTAL  PA  including  cost 
of Human Resources 

8.2.5. 

d 

0.452  0.838 

0.838 

0.838 

0.838 

3.804 

8.2.6. 

e 

0.077  0.131 

0.077 

0.379 

0.333 

0.997 

1.959  2.569 

2.815 

3.117 

3.071 

13.531 

a+c
+d
+e 

b+c
+d
+e 

Co-financing details 

If  the  proposal  involves  co-financing  by  Member  States,  or  other  bodies  (please 
specify  which),  an  estimate  of  the  level  of  this  co-financing  should  be  indicated  in 

30 
31 
32 

Expenditure that does not fall under Chapter xx 01 of the Title xx concerned. 
Expenditure within article xx 01 04 of Title xx. 
Expenditure within chapter xx 01 other than articles xx 01 04 or xx 01 05. 

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the table below (additional lines may be added if different bodies are foreseen for the 
provision of the co-financing): 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Co-financing body 

2009  2010

2011

2012

2013 

2009-
2013 

…………………… 

TOTAL  CA  including  co-
financing 

f 

a+c
+d
+e
+f 

4.1.2.  Compatibility with Financial Programming 

(cid:58) 

(cid:133) 

(cid:133) 

Proposal is compatible with existing financial programming. 

Proposal  will  entail  reprogramming  of  the  relevant  heading  in  the  financial 
perspective. 

Proposal  may  require  application  of  the  provisions  of  the  Interinstitutional 
Agreement33 (i.e. flexibility instrument or revision of the financial perspective). 

4.1.3.  Financial impact on Revenue 

(cid:58) 

(cid:133) 

Proposal has no financial implications on revenue 

Proposal has financial impact – the effect on revenue is as follows: 

Budget line 

Revenue 

EUR million (to one decimal place) 

Situation following action 

[Yea
r n] 

[n+1] [n+2]  [n+3

] 

[n+4] [n+5]

34

Prior to
action 
[Year 
n-1] 

a) Revenue in absolute terms 

b) Change in revenue 

 ∆ 

4.2. 

Human Resources FTE (including officials, temporary and external staff) – see 
detail under point 8.2.1. 

Annual requirements 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

Total  number  of  human 
resources 

5 

10 

10 

10 

10 

33 
34 

See points 19 and 24 of the Interinstitutional agreement. 
Additional columns should be added if necessary i.e. if the duration of the action exceeds 6 years 

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5. 

CHARACTERISTICS AND OBJECTIVES 

5.1. 

Need to be met in the short or long term 

The main objective is to increase the positive environmental impact of the scheme by 
improving  performance  of  organisations  participating  in  EMAS  and  by  increasing 
the uptake of the scheme. The scheme remains essentially voluntary.  

Main elements: 

•  EMAS  will  remain  to  be  based  on  the  ISO  14001  standard  on  environmental 
management system. This system is complemented by the following elements: 

- 

- 

- 

reinforced obligation for organisations to comply with all applicable legal 
requirements relating to the environment 

reinforced obligation for organisations on environmental reporting on the 
basis of core performance indicators 

guidance on best practice in environmental management 

•  harmonisation  of  procedures  for  accreditation  and  verification  (in  line  with  the 

proposal on accreditation - ENTR) 

•  enlargement of the geographical scope so that organisations from outside the EU 

will be able to participate in EMAS 

•  measures to reduce administrative burdens and create incentives: 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

simplification of the procedure for cluster registration 

reduction of registration fees for SME's 

regulatory relief and deregulation so that EMAS registered organisations 
may benefit from e.g. less frequent renewal of permit etc. 

obligation  for  national  authorities  to  consider  incentives  such  as  tax 
incentives  in  the  framework  of  schemes  supporting  environmental 
performance of organisations 

simplification of the rules for the use of the EMAS logo 

•  promotion  of  EMAS  including  the  EMAS  award  and  information  campaigns  at 

the EU and national level 

5.2. 

Value-added  of  Community  involvement  and  coherence  of  the  proposal  with 
other financial instruments and possible synergy 

The  adoption  of  the  scheme  at  Community  level,  in  which  also  organisations  from 
third countries can participate, offers one accredited environmental management and 
audit  system  which  not  only  EU  organisations,  but  also  organisations  from  third 
countries can use in different Member States and possibly third countries. It allows 
communications of improved environmental performance across Member States and 
EU boundaries through the use of EMAS registration and the use of the EMAS logo. 

5.3. 

Objectives, expected results and related indicators of the proposal in the context 
of the ABM framework 

Within the framework of the objective to increase the uptake of the scheme and thus 
the  overall  environmental  performance  of  organisations  within  and  outside  the  EU, 
the following actions are relevant in the context of the ABM framework: 

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–  the  organisation  of  and  contribution  to  promotion  and  awareness  raising  actions 

directed at the public at large and at organisations in particular 

–  share / develop effective tools for EMAS promotion and make them available to 

all EMAS participants 

–  organisation of EMAS-awards 

–  development and provision of incentives to organisations to join the scheme 

Within  the  framework  of  the  objective  to  help  organisations  in  specific  sectors  to 
improve  reporting  on  their  environmental  performance,  the  following  action  is 
relevant in the context of the ABM framework: 

–  development  of  sectoral  reference  documents  including  best  environmental 

practice and environmental performance indicators for specific sectors. 

Within the framework of the objective to harmonise the functioning of Accreditation 
Bodies and of Competent Bodies, the following actions are relevant in the context of 
the ABM framework: 

–  organisation of peer reviews of Accreditation Bodies 

–  organisation of peer reviews of Competent Bodies 

5.4.  Method of Implementation (indicative) 

(cid:58)  Centralised Management 

(cid:58) 

(cid:133) 

directly by the Commission 

indirectly by delegation to: 

(cid:133) 

(cid:133) 

executive Agencies 

bodies set up by the Communities as referred to in art. 185 of the 
Financial Regulation 

(cid:133) 

national public-sector bodies/bodies with public-service mission 

(cid:133) 

Shared or decentralised management 

(cid:133)  with Member States 

(cid:133)  with Third countries 

(cid:133) 

Joint management with international organisations (please specify) 

Relevant comments: 

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6. 

MONITORING AND EVALUATION 

6.1.  Monitoring system 

Member  States  shall  report  on  all  actions  and  measures  they  adopt  under  this 
regulation. 

The  Commission  shall  report  to  the  Council  and  the  European  Parliament  on  the 
measures taken under this regulation. 

Monitoring will also occur through regular meetings with Member States and other 
stakeholders,  as  well  as  through  the  peer  review  carried  out  by  the  Accreditation 
Bodies  meeting  under  Article  31  of  this  regulation  and  the  Forum  of  Competent 
Bodies. 

6.2. 

Evaluation 

6.2.1.  Ex-ante evaluation 

See  the  Impact  Assessment  accompanying  this  proposal  as  a  Commission  Staff 
Working  Paper.  The  impacts  of  all  measures  proposed  where  assessed  from  an 
environmental, economic and social point of view. 

6.2.2.  Measures taken  following  an intermediate/ex-post evaluation (lessons learned from 

similar experiences in the past) 

The  proposal  builds  upon  the  experience  gained  in  the  application  of  Regulation 
(EC) No 761/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 March 2001 
allowing voluntary participation by organisations in a Community Eco-management 
and audit scheme (EMAS)35 and on the results of the public consultation and of more 
specific  stakeholder  consultation  and  the  use  of  external  expertise.  The  Impact 
Assessment took these evaluations into account. 

6.2.3.  Terms and frequency of future evaluation 

Actions  receiving  financial  assistance  from  the  Commission  shall  be  monitored 
regularly. 

Regular  evaluation  of  the  effectiveness  of  the  Regulation  will  take  place  in  the 
Committee  established  by  it.  Appropriate  guidance  and  reference  documents  for 
specific sectors may be developed and necessary amendments to the Regulation may 
be proposed. 

The Commission shall submit to the Council and the European Parliament: 

(1) 

a  report,  at  least  on  a  three-yearly  basis,  to  on  the  actions  and  measures 
undertaken with regard to actions relating to, inter alia: 

(a) 

(b) 

provision of information, 

aiming at enhancing collaboration and coordination between Member 
States 

(c) 

promotion of EMAS and the provision of incentives 

(2) 

an ex-post evaluation no later than five years after the entry into force of this 
regulation. 

35 

OJ L 114, 24.4.2001, p. 1. 

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7. 

ANTI-FRAUD MEASURES  

Internal control standards No 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, and the principles of Council 
Regulation (EC, Euratom)  No 1605/2002 on the Financial Regulation applicable to 
the general budget of the European Communities will be fully applied. 

The  Commission  shall  ensure  that,  when  actions  will  be  undertaken  or  financed 
under the present Regulation, the financial interests of the Community are protected 
by  the  application  of  preventive  measures  against  fraud,  corruption  and  any  other 
illegal activities, by effective checks and by the recovery of the amounts unduly paid 
and, if irregularities are detected, by effective, proportional and dissuasive penalties, 
in  accordance  with  Council  Regulations  (EC,  Euratom)  No  2988/95  and  (Euratom, 
EC)  No  2185/96,  and  with  Regulation  (EC)  No  1073/1999  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council. 

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8. 

DETAILS OF RESOURCES 

8.1. 

Objectives of the proposal in terms of their financial cost 

Type of output 

Av. 
cost 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

n + 5 and later 

2009 - 2013 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

No. 
outputs 

Total 
cost 

Commitment appropriations in EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

0.300 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.250 

0.250 

0.250 

0.250 

0.250 

1.100 

1.250 

1 

0.050 

1 

0.050 

1 

0.050 

1 

0.050 

1 

0.050 

5 

0.250 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.700 

0.600 

0.600 

0.600 

0.600 

0.500 

3.100 

of 

(Headings 
Objectives, 
actions 
and 
outputs should be 
provided) 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE 
No.1: promotion 

Action 1 
promotion and 
awareness raising 
actions 

Action 2 
Assistance to 
SME's to 
implement EMAS 

Action 3: EMAS 
awards 

Action 4: 
incentives 

Sub-total 
Objective 1 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE No. 
2: development of 
reference 
documents for 
specific sectors 

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Action 1: studies 
by an external 
consultant 

Action 2: meeting 
of expert groups 

Sub-total 
Objective 2 

OPERATIONAL 
OBJECTIVE N° 
3: peer reviews 

Action 1: peer 
review 
Accreditation 
Bodies 

Action 2: peer 
review Competent 
Bodies 

Sub-total 
Objective 3 

TOTAL COST 

5 

8 

0.250 

10 

0.500 

15 

0.750 

15 

0.750 

15 

0.750 

0.080 

10 

0.100 

15 

0.150 

15 

0.150 

15 

0.150 

0.330 

0.600 

0.900 

0.900 

0.900 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.100 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

1.230 

1.400 

1.700 

1.700 

1.700 

3.000 

0.630 

3.630 

0.500 

0.500 

1.000 

7.730 

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8.2. 

Administrative Expenditure 

8.2.1.  Number and type of human resources 

Types of post 

Staff to be assigned to management of the action using existing and/or 
additional resources (number of posts/FTEs) 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

3 

2 

5 

3 

2 

5 

3 

2 

5 

3 

2 

5 

2 

1 

2 

Officials or 
temporary 
staff36 (XX 01 
01) 

A*/AD 

B*, 
C*/AST 

Staff  financed37  by  art. 
XX  01  02  (for  EMAS: 
END only) 

Other  staff38  financed by 
art. XX 01 04/05 

TOTAL 

5 

10 

10 

10 

10 

8.2.2.  Description of tasks deriving from the action 

Overall  management  of  the  scheme,  development  and  revision  of  sectoral 
documents, management of marketing. 

8.2.3. 

Sources of human resources (statutory) 

(cid:58) 

(cid:133) 

(cid:58) 

(cid:58) 

(cid:133) 

Posts currently allocated to the management of the programme to be replaced 
or extended (1 AD + 1 AST + 2 END) 

Posts pre-allocated within the APS/PDB exercise for year n 

Posts to be requested in the next APS/PDB procedure (2 AD) 

Posts  to  be  redeployed  using  existing  resources  within  the  managing  service 
(internal redeployment) (1 AST + 3 END) 

Posts required for year n although not foreseen in the APS/PDB exercise of the 
year in question 

36 
37 
38 

Cost of which is NOT covered by the reference amount 
Cost of which is NOT covered by the reference amount 
Cost of which is included within the reference amount 

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8.2.4.  Other  Administrative  expenditure  included  in  reference  amount  (XX  01  04/05  – 

Expenditure on administrative management) 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Budget line 

07 01 04 01 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

2009-
2013 

Technical 

1 
and 
assistance (including related staff costs) 

administrative 

Executive agencies39 

Other 

technical 

and 

administrative 

assistance 

- intra muros  

- extra muros: IT-helpdesk 

0.200  0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

1.000 

Total  Technical  and  administrative 
assistance 

0.200  0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

0.200 

1.000 

8.2.5.  Financial cost of human resources and associated costs not included in the reference 

amount 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places) 

Type of human resources 

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

2014 

and later 

Officials  and  temporary  staff 
(XX 01 01) 

Staff  financed  by  Art  XX  01 
02  (auxiliary,  END,  contract 
staff, etc.) 

(specify budget line) 

0.351 

0.585 

0.585 

0.585 

0.585 

0.101 

0.253 

0.253 

0.253 

0.253 

cost 

Total 
of  Human 
Resources  and  associated 
costs 
in  reference 
amount) 

(NOT 

0.452 

0.838 

0.838 

0.838 

0.838 

Calculation– Officials and Temporary agents 

The standard salary for 1 A*/AD as foreseen in Point 8.2.1 is 117000 €/year. 

39 

Reference should be made to the specific legislative financial statement for the Executive Agency(ies) 
concerned. 

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Calculation– Staff financed under art. XX 01 02 

The standard salary for 1 END as foreseen in Point 8.2.1 is 50580 €/year. 

8.2.6. Other administrative expenditure not included in reference amount 

EUR million (to 3 decimal places)

2009 

2010 

2011 

2012 

2013 

2014 
and 
later 

2009 - 
2013 

XX 01 02 11 01 – Missions 

0.008 

0.008 

0.008 

0.010 

0.010 

XX 01 02 11 02 – Meetings & Conferences 

0.015 

0.015 

0.015 

0.115 

0.015 

XX 01 02 11 03 – Committees40  

0.054 

0.108 

0.054 

0.054 

0.108 

XX 01 02 11 04 – Studies & consultations 

0.200 

0.200 

0.044 

0.175 

0.378 

0.400 

XX 01 02 11 05 - Information systems 

2 

Total 

Other  Management 

Expenditure (XX 01 02 11) 

3  Other 

expenditure 

administrative 
including reference to budget line) 

nature 

of 

an 
(specify 

expenditure, 
than  human  resources  and 
in 

Total  Administrative 
other 
associated  costs  (NOT 
reference amount) 

included 

0.077 

0.131 

0.077 

0.379 

0.333 

0.997 

Calculation - Other administrative expenditure not included in reference amount 

4 missions with a unit cost of 1.000 € per mission are foreseen every year from 2009 to 2013, 
in order to explain the objectives and measures of the regulation and help its implementation 
and application in Member States. 

2 missions with a unit cost of 1.000 € per mission are foreseen every year from 2009 to 2013, 
for  attendance  of  meetings  of  the  Accreditation  Bodies  meeting  under  Article  30  of  this 
regulation. 

2 missions with a unit cost of 1.000 € per mission are foreseen every year from 2009 to 2013, 
for attendance of meetings of the Forum of Competent Bodies. 

2 extra missions with a unit cost of 1.000 € per mission are foreseen every year in 2012 and 
2013, in order to meet with stakeholders in view of the revision of the Regulation. 

3 meetings to the ISO TC 207 (technical committee on environmental management systems) 

40 

C10900  -  Committee  for  application  of  the  regulation  authorising  voluntary  participation  by 
undertakings in the industrial sector in a Community eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS). 

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per year with an average cost of 5.000 € per mission are foreseen every year between 2009 
and 2013 

The organisation of 1 conference (unit cost: 100.000 €) is foreseen in 2012, in order to consult 
stakeholders  and  competent  authorities  on  the  implementation  of  the  measures  of  the 
Regulation in view of its revision in 2014. 

Meetings of the Regulatory Committee established under the Regulation (unit cost: 27.000 € 
per  meeting)  are  foreseen  twice  every  year  as  from  2009,  in  order  to  allow  information 
exchange,  in  view  of  adoption  of  appropriate  guidelines  and  recommendations  to  strive  for 
more harmonisation between Member States. 

2 extra meetings of the Regulatory Committee established under the Regulation are foreseen 
in  2010  (shortly  after  entry  into  force  of  the  regulation)  and  2  extra  meetings  of  the 
Committee are foreseen in 2013 in view of the revision of the Regulation in 2014. (unit cost: 
27.000 € per meeting). 

External studies are foreseen with a total cost of 200.000 € per year in 2012 and 2013 in view 
of the revision of the regulation in 2014. 

The needs for human and administrative resources shall be covered within the allocation that 
can be granted to the managing DG in the framework of the annual allocation procedure in the 
light of budgetary constraints. 

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