ISO 14001 is
an internationally agreed standard that sets out the requirements for an environmental
management system.It helps organizations improve their environmental
performance through more efficient use of resources and reduction of waste,
gaining a competitive advantage and the trust of stakeholders. ISO 14001 is suitable
for organizations of all types and sizes, be they private, not-for-profit or
governmental. It requires that an organization considers all environmental
issues relevant to its operations, such as air pollution, water and sewage
issues, waste management, soil contamination, climate change mitigation and adaptation,
and resource use and efficiency. Environmental Management System certification
to the ISO 14001 standard helps organisations demonstrate an ongoing commitment
to improving environmental performance. The standard has been subject to a
comprehensive rewrite to ensure that its aims and purpose support the changing
needs of today’s world and reflect the increasingly complex environment in
which organisations operate. ISO 14001:2015 puts a greater emphasis on
proactively improving environmental performance and embeds environmental
management within an organisation's strategic plans. It is suitable for
organisations of any size and in any sector. There are many reasons why an
organization should take a strategic approach to improving its environmental performance.
Users of the standard have reported that ISO 14001 helps:
• Demonstrate
compliance with current and future statutory and regulatory requirements
• Increase
leadership involvement and engagement of employees
• Improve
company reputation and the confidence of stakeholders through strategic
communication
• Achieve
strategic business aims by incorporating environmental issues into business
management
• Provide a
competitive and financial advantage through improved efficiencies and reduced
costs
• Encourage
better environmental performance of suppliers by integrating them into the
organization’s
business systems.
Environmental
legislation compliance: ISO 14001 certification can help you comply with legal
requirements by providing a systematic approach for addressing current and
identifying future legislation.
Improved
management of environmental risk: ISO 14001 can help to manage and improve
performance in key metric areas such as lower energy usage, waste reduction,
increased recycling, and lower raw material and consumable costs. This reduces
the need for reactive strategies such as clean-ups and litigation, which can result in reputational damage and
legal proceedings.
Increased
credibility: Being independently assessed against ISO 14001:2015 increases your
credibility and provides a competitive edge over non-certified businesses when
invited to tender.
Risk
management: Certification to ISO 14001:2015 can help you demonstrate you are
managing environmental risks and are making continual improvements against
specific targets.
Cost
reduction: By promoting continual improvement against environmental objectives,
ISO 14001 can help drive more efficient use of raw materials and enhanced
performance, leading to cost reductions.
Easily
integrated:ISO 14001:2015 shares a common management system framework with
other management system standards, such as ISO 9001 and ISO 45001, enabling
easy integration with your quality, environmental and occupational health &
safety management systems.
User questions & answers