This article appeared in CCH EnviroMation in the summer of 1996 and is reproduced courtesy of CCH Canadian Limited.

FIRST ISO 14000 EMS STANDARDS NOW PUBLISHED

Willms & Shier lawyers are principal authors of the Canadian Environmental Compliance Manual (CCH Canadian Limited).

Large companies involved in international trade and consultants in the quality and management system fields are ramping up now that the first of the ISO 14000 international environmental quality management standards have been published.

Standards for Environmental Management Systems and Environmental Auditing have been finalized. Two Environmental Management Standards (ISO 14001 and ISO 14004) were published September 3, 1996. Three Environmental Auditing standards (ISO 14010, ISO 14011 and ISO 14012) are to be published in mid-October. Published standards are available immediately from the Standards Council of Canada (613) 238-3222. Several weeks after release they will also be available from the Canadian Standards Association (CSA).

This article describes the structure, benefits and development of the ISO 14000 series and introduces the main features of the new Environmental Management Systems standard.

ISO 14000 consists of a series of documents in development for the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The documents will ultimately be published as international (ISO) standards for corporate and institutional environmental performance and management practices.

The ISO 14000 series does not encompass occupational health and safety (OH&S) issues. ISO is currently considering whether there is need and support for a separate OH&S series of standards.

ISO 14000, as a series of documents, is similar to ISO 9000 in that both series require a protocol of document generation and control, and both require a commitment to continuous improvement.

The standards are meant to be utilised by all types and sizes of organizations. It may be easiest to apply them to the smallest possible unit that has its own support functions and administration. In practice this means that each facility should have its own environmental management system to comply with local environmental laws and regulations and with the selected ISO standards.

Companies that adopt ISO standards may become certified under ISO 14000 by paying a certification fee and the expenses of an ISO Registrar to audit the conformance of organization to ISO 14000. The process is called "conformance assessment." A number of consulting companies are in the process of becoming accredited as registrars under a program administered by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC). Environmental auditors are currently being certified to ISO 14012 (and beyond) by the Canadian Environmental Auditing Association (CEAA).

The purpose of all ISO standards is to facilitate international trade. Some expect that ISO 14000 certification will become a "green" procurement prerequisite, especially where international monetary institutions or governing bodies are involved.

Other anticipated benefits of implementing ISO 14000 standards include:

• reducing costs through reduced waste;
• maintaining environmental compliance and avoiding prosecution and administrative action by government agencies;
• improved productivity and efficiency through better management;
• comfort to lenders and insurers;
• enhancing customer and public relations;
• potential for favourable treatment by regulators.

Regulators in the U.S. have announced that they are considering relaxing some audit and compliance requirements for companies that implement ISO 14000 auditing standards. In Ontario the MOEE is studying less stringent MISA monitoring requirements for companies with environmental management systems in place.

At least one court judgment has ordered compliance with ISO 14001 as part of a sentence. In the Prospec Chemicals Ltd. case in Alberta, the company was convicted causing air pollution which violated its operating licence. In addition to a $100,000 fine, the Court ordered the company to achieve ISO 14000 registration within three years or else forfeit a $40,000 performance bond.

The EMS can be the building block of a company's environmental performance and management program. The EMS directs the company to identify its environmental goals and establish a program for monitoring its progress in reaching these goals. An ISO 14001 EMS should be integrated into the company's management structure so that it enhances environmental performance without interfering with the company's business priorities. ISO 14001 is designed to be provide an environmental management standard which takes into account business and economic considerations while improving on already established environmental protection programs.

An ISO 14001 EMS should include: a written program; an education and training program; incorporation of all relevant local and federal environmental regulations.

According to the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Standard an EMS must have the following components:

• environmental policy;
• planning (determination of legal and other requirements, environmental aspects and impacts, development of objectives and targets, formulation of environmental management programmes);
• implementation and operation (awareness and competency training, assignment of responsibilities and reporting structures, documentation and document control, emergency preparedness and response);
• checking and corrective action (monitoring and measurement, preventative and corrective action, EMS audit);
• management review.

These components are to be carried out iteratively. Continuous improvement is a stated objective of the ISO 14000 EMS program. The policy drives the EMS towards achieving specified goals.

Achievement is marked by performance indicators. Implementation of the programmes is audited. Improvement is benchmarked. Management determines what changes or next steps are required towards the fulfilment of the policy (objectives and targets) are required which, in turn, influences the programmes implemented in the next cycle.

Programs require identification, assignment of responsibility, commitment of personnel and financial resources, and a timeframe for implementation.

The ISO 14004 General Guidelines Standard provides additional guidance on planning, implementation, measurement and evaluation, and review and improvement of the EMS.

Currently the ISO 14000 series includes the following documents. The five standards marked with an asterisk have been published or are imminent.

Environmental Management Systems

• ISO 14001 Environmental Management Systems - Specification with Guidance for Use (Published September 1996)
• ISO 14004 Environmental Management Systems - General Guidelines on Principles, Systems and Supporting Techniques (Published September 1996)

• ISO 14010 Guidelines for Environmental Auditing - General Principles
• ISO 14011 Guidelines for Environmental Auditing - Audit Procedures - Auditing of Environmental Management Systems
• ISO 14012 Guidelines for Environmental Auditing - Qualification Criteria for Environmental Auditors

• ISO 14020 Environmental Labelling - Basic Principles of All Environmental Labelling
• ISO 14021 Environmental Labelling - Self-Declaration - Environmental Claims - Terms and Definitions
• ISO 14022 Environmental Labelling - Symbols
• ISO 14023 Environmental Labelling - Testing and Verification
• Methodologies
• ISO 14024 Environmental Labelling - Practitioner Programmes - Guiding Principles, Practices and Certification Procedures of Multiple Criteria (Type 1) Programmes

• ISO 14031 Environmental Performance Evaluation

• ISO 14040 Life Cycle Assessment - General Principles and Practices
• ISO 14041 Life Cycle Assessment - Goal and Definition/Scope and Inventory Assessment
• ISO 14042 Life Cycle Assessment - Impact Assessment
• ISO 14043 Life Cycle Assessment - Interpretation

• ISO 14050 Terms and Definitions
• Guide 64 Guide for the Inclusion of Environmental Aspects in Product Standards

In June 1996 the ISO/TC207 Technical Committee met in Rio De Janerio, Brazil. The members resolved to proceed to study the options for a Phase 1 environmental site assessment standard describes as W1-14015.

Several countries, including Canada and the U.S., supported a standard limited to the non-intrusive assessment of potential contamination of soil and groundwater on an individual site. Some other delegations proposed to expand the site assessment standard to include elements of what is often called a "due diligence assessment" or "transactional audit." These elements would include analysis of environmental risk, regulatory compliance and environmental management system status.

A working group will study the need and support for the expanded proposal and report next year. It is unlikely that the new standard could be developed, approved and published in under two years.

As noted above, published standards can be purchased from the Standards Council of Canada and the Canadian Standards Association.

Internet reference: The Canadian Standards Association (CSA) maintains a WWW site with ISO 14000 information at http://www.csa-international.org/english/search/results-schedule.cfm?key=132

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