Environmental management system (EMS) refers to the management of an organisation's environmental programs in a comprehensive, systematic, planned and documented manner. It includes the organisational structure, planning and resources for developing, implementing and maintaining policy for environmental protection.

An Environmental Management System (EMS):

  Serves as a tool to improve environmental performance

  Provides a systematic way of managing an organization’s environmental affairs

  Is the aspect of the organization’s overall management structure that addresses immediate and long-term impacts of its products, services and processes on the environment

  Gives order and consistency for organizations to address environmental concerns through the allocation of resources, assignment of responsibility and ongoing evaluation of practices, procedures and processes

  Focuses on continual improvement of the system

What is the EMS Model?

An EMS follows a Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle, or PDCA. The diagram shows the process of first developing an environmental policy, planning the EMS, and then implementing it. The process also includes checking the system and acting on it. The model is continuous because an EMS is a process of continual improvement in which an organization is constantly reviewing and revising the system.

This is a model that can be used by a wide range of organizations — from manufacturing facilities to service industries to government agencies.

What are some key elements of an EMS?

  Policy Statement - a statement of the organization’s commitment to the environment

  Identification of Significant Environmental Impacts - environmental attributes of products, activities and services and their effects on the environment

  Development of Objectives and Targets - environmental goals for the organization

  Implementation - plans to meet objectives and targets

  Training - instruction to ensure employees are aware and capable of fulfilling their environmental responsibilities

  Management Review

Can existing environmental management activities be integrated into the EMS?

Yes. An EMS is flexible and does not require organizations to necessarily “retool” their existing activities. An EMS establishes a management framework by which an organization’s impacts on the environment can be systematically identified and reduced. For example, many organizations, including counties and municipalities, have active and effective pollution prevention activities underway. These could be incorporated into the overall EMS.

LEGISLATION STANDARDS:

The Environmental Liability Directive [ELD] 2004/35/EC is one of the most important instruments that your business will need to comply with and must be included in you EMS. It came into force across Europe during 2009 and for example it became law on the 1st March 2009 converting the various national Pollution Prevention Guidelines (PPGs) such as the UK PPG11, PPG18 and PPG21 into requirements where failure to comply can result in fines and more significantly reformation / reinstatement costs which can run into many millions of Euro or Dollars. Within this Directive is a requirement to mitigate the effects of events such as spills and firewater, the latter is the runoff from fires. The Directive makes it clear that it is the site owners’ responsibility to contain spills and firewater on site using some form of containment apparatus such as sealing the drains. More information on the ELD can be obtained from the UK Environment Agency website.

FINANCIAL:

Cost savings through the reduction of waste and more efficient use of natural resources (electricity, water, gas and fuels.)

Avoiding fines and penalties from not meeting environmental legislation by identifying environmental risks and addressing weaknesses.

Reduction in insurance costs by demonstrating better risk management...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_management_system