Environmental management systems: what are they and what are their benefits for companies?

Any type of enterprise interacts with the external environment. This interaction mainly concerns the consumption of energy and raw materials and the production of waste.

For this reason, it is necessary to manage business activities in such a way as to minimize:

• Consumption of raw materials and energy;
• The production of waste;
• The environmental risk.

Environmental management is the part of general management that deals with environmental activities involving the interaction of the enterprise with the environment.

Environmental legislation has evolved over the years and "Command and Control" (end of pipe) type standards have been joined by standards based on an integrated approach and subsequently voluntary environmental management tools.

The "Command and Control" standards provide for compliance with the obligations established by the legislator and any sanctions applied in the event of non-compliance with the limits defined by the law. Command and Control regulations do not include any type of preventive action on the environmental impacts generated by the company.

Preventive actions were introduced through the issuing of regulations based on the integrated approach. These standards make it possible to define the complete picture of emissions for each industrial activity, thus allowing for the implementation of actions aimed at the protection of natural ecosystems in an organic and coordinated manner.

The rules based on the integrated approach, mandatory for certain types of activities and projects, are:

• Environmental Impact Assessment: is based on the principle of preventive action, according to which the best environmental policy consists in preventing the negative effects associated with the implementation of projects rather than subsequently combating their effects. The Environmental Impact Assessment, therefore, is a procedure that allows for the identification, description and evaluation of the effects of projects on the environment and human health. Article 6 and the annexes to the second part of the Legislative Decree of 3 April 2006, n. 152 establish when it is mandatory to submit a project to an environmental impact assessment;
• Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC): aims to prevent, reduce and, as far as possible, eliminate pollution, intervening at the source of polluting activities and ensuring correct management of natural resources. The production activities listed in annexes VIII and XII to part II of Legislative Decree 152/06 identify the plants subject to the IPPC Directive;
• Seveso III Directive: the legislation aims to minimize the risk of major accidents associated with certain dangerous substances. The decree applies to establishments in which dangerous substances are present in quantities ≥ those indicated in Annex I of Legislative Decree 26 June 2015, n. 105 - Implementation of directive 2012/18/EU relating to the control of the danger of major accidents connected to dangerous substances.

Finally, environmental legislation has evolved towards a second phase characterized by voluntary environmental management tools and a proactive approach.

Voluntary tools for environmental management refer to the organization (such as Environmental Management Systems) or to the product (such as Environmental Product Certifications).

As anticipated, the various voluntary tools referring to the organization include the Environmental Management System (EMS), i.e. the part of the general management system responsible for the company's environmental management which has the purpose of implementing the environmental policy, established by the management .

The reference standards for Environmental Management Systems are:

• ISO 14001:2015 (International Standard);
• Regulation (EC) No. 1221/2009 – EMAS III (European Standard).

The UNI EN ISO 14001 standard

The UNI EN ISO 14001 standard specifies the requirements of an environmental management system that an organization can use to develop its environmental performance.

The standard is intended for an organization that wishes to manage its environmental responsibilities in a systematic way. Furthermore, UNI EN ISO 14001 is applicable to any organization.

UNI EN ISO 14001 takes into consideration the following elements of an environmental management system:

• Environmental policy: corresponds to a declaration of intent that inspires the company in relation to its overall environmental performance. The environmental policy provides a framework of reference for the activities, for the definition of objectives and goals in the environmental field;
• Planning: involves the phases of identifying the environmental aspects (elements of an organization's activities, products or services that have, or can have, an impact on the environment), the determination of the significant environmental aspects (which have, or can have a significant environmental impact) and the environmental regulations applicable to these environmental aspects. In planning, it is necessary to identify the responsibilities for each function and define means and times for achieving the goals;
• Implementation and functioning: involves the definition of the organizational structure of the EMS, the responsibilities and tasks in the environmental field, the adequate training of personnel, the definition of internal or external communication channels, the development and control of documentation, the operational control of activities that determine significant environmental impacts and emergency response training;
• Controls and corrective actions: provides for the measurement of environmental aspects, the identification of non-conformities, the implementation of corrective and preventive activities and the verification of their effectiveness, the recording of environmental information and data, EMS audits and communication of results to management;
• Management Review: Involves reviewing the EMS to ensure it continues to be appropriate and effective. During the review it may be necessary to review and change the environmental policy, objectives and other elements of the environmental management system, in order to implement the continuous improvement process;
• Continuous improvement: involves achieving improvements in the company's environmental performance in line with the environmental policy.

The EMAS Regulation

The EMAS Regulation is a voluntary environmental management tool for all types of organizations that are willing to evaluate, report and improve their environmental performance.

The EMAS Regulation is essential to promote the continuous improvement of the environmental performance of organizations through the establishment and application of environmental management systems, the systematic, objective and periodic evaluation of the performance of these systems, the provision of information on environmental performance, an open dialogue with the public and other interested parties and finally with the active involvement and adequate training of staff by the organizations concerned.

It includes 7 attachments:

• Annex I - Environmental analysis: the annex provides for the identification of the regulatory obligations applicable to the environment, of all the direct and indirect environmental aspects that have a significant environmental impact, the description of the criteria for assessing the significance of the environmental impact ;
• Annex II - Environmental Management System requirements: establishes that the Environmental Management System must be implemented in compliance with sections 4-10 of the UNI EN ISO 14001:2015 standard;
• Annex III - Internal environmental audit: the audit program ensures that the management of the organization has the information necessary to examine the environmental performance of the organization and the effectiveness of the environmental management system and is able to demonstrate that all these aspects are under control. The audit or audit cycle covering all activities of the organization is completed, as appropriate, at intervals not exceeding three years. Audit activities include interviews of personnel on environmental performance, inspections of operating conditions and equipment, and examination of records, written procedures and other relevant documents.
• Annex IV - Environmental communication: provides that environmental information is communicated in a clear way. In this regard, the following information must be included in the "Environmental Declaration": a clear and unambiguous description of the organization applying for EMAS registration and a summary of its activities and its products and services; the organisation's environmental policy and a brief description of its environmental management system; a description of all the significant direct and indirect environmental aspects that determine the organization's significant environmental impacts and an explanation of the nature of the impacts related to these aspects; a description of the environmental objectives and targets in relation to the significant environmental aspects and impacts; a summary of available data on the organization's performance against its environmental objectives and targets with respect to its significant environmental impacts; other factors relating to environmental performance, including performance against statutory requirements, with respect to significant environmental impacts; a reference to the applicable regulatory obligations relating to the environment; the name and accreditation or license number of the environmental verifier and the date of validation;
• Annex V - The EMAS Logo;
• Annex VI - Information for registration: provides for the insertion of data relating to the organisation, the site and the environmental verifier;
• Annex VII - Declaration of the environmental verifier on verification and validation activities.

Differences and similarities between the UNI EN ISO 14001 standard and the EMAS Regulation

The two reference standards are very similar to each other but have some differences.

The first is that the UNI EN ISO 14001 standard is an international standard while EMAS is European.

For the EMAS regulation, an audit frequency of a maximum of 3 years is envisaged and there is a strong constraint to continuous improvement of performance.

In the case of the ISO standard, audit frequency is not prescribed and there is a non-binding commitment to continuous improvement.

Another important difference is that the ISO standard does not oblige member companies to relate to the outside world, which is instead required for companies participating in the EMAS regulation.

Furthermore, the latter provides for the active participation of employees, while the ISO standard only provides for staff training.

Finally, the ISO standard requires that the company's Environmental Policy, consisting of general guidelines relating to the environment, be made available to the public; on the contrary, the EMAS regulation provides for the communication to the public of the environmental information necessary to make the environmental effects of the activity understood through the "Environmental Declaration" which allows to establish an open dialogue with the outside world.

The advantages for companies that invest in Environmental Management Systems

It is therefore clear that the EMAS regulation requires greater involvement of personnel and more careful communication within the company and towards the outside.

Consequently, EMAS is often more suitable when the company wants to demonstrate its concern for the environment to public entities and is especially beneficial for those who have problems with consensus or relationships with the public.

In both cases, investing in Environmental Management Systems still offers important advantages for companies.

In addition to increasing trust and transparency in the company, EMSs also help strengthen relationships with various stakeholders, including citizens and the public administration.

Environmental management systems also offer competitive and economic advantages since they make it possible to reduce costs related to energy consumption or waste management and to enhance the company's image by allowing a positive economic return on the investments made.

Conclusions

The reference standards for Environmental Management Systems help ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and can guide companies towards transparent and well-structured environmental management.

Investing in Environmental Management Systems allows the company not only to improve its environmental performance, but also to increase the efficiency level of production processes, aiming at achieving continuous improvement.

The ISO 14001 standard and the EMAS Regulation have several similarities but also significant differences between them.

For this reason, in-depth knowledge of the two standards is essential to evaluate the best and most suitable choice for your business needs.