ISO 14001 – Environmental Management Systems

ISO 14001 is an internationally agreed standard that sets out the requirements for an environmental management system. It helps organisations improve their environmental performance through more efficient use of resources and reduction of waste. It can easily be integrated into any existing ISO management system such as ISO 9001 Quality Management, or ISO 45001 Health and Safety Management as they all use a high level structure with related clauses. ISO 14001 is suitable for organisations of all types and sizes, and, is intended for use by an organisation seeking to manage its environmental responsibilities in a systematic manner, providing a framework and guidelines for creating an Environmental Management System.

The standard requires that an organisation 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.

Implementing ISO14001 can help the organisation achieve the intended outcomes of its environmental management system, which provides value for the environment, the organisation itself and interested parties.

There are a number of benefits that can be seen from implementing an Environmental management system.

As with 9001, accredited certification to ISO 14001 is not a requirement, and organisations can still see many of the benefits of using the standard without going through the accredited certification process. However, having the certification is a way of demonstrating to your buyers, customers, suppliers and other stakeholders that you have implemented the standard properly and helps to show how you meet regulatory or contractual requirements. If you would like more information on how to get started with ISO 14001:2015 then please contact us.

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