Build and implement your environmental management system with ISO 14001
ISO 14001 is the international standard for environmental management that helps you structure, implement, and continuously improve your environmental management system (EMS). By adopting this voluntary approach, your organization can manage its environmental impacts, align with sustainability commitments, and enhance its overall performance while meeting regulatory requirements and stakeholder expectations.
Implementing an EMS with ISO 14001
The voluntary ISO 14001 standard sets out the requirements for establishing an effective environmental management system (EMS). It is intended for all organizations, regardless of their size or field of activity. It applies to all sectors, including manufacturing (food processing, metallurgy, textiles, mechanical engineering, chemicals, etc.) as well as the medical, social, and administrative sectors.
It aims to continuously improve the company’s environmental performance by encouraging it to organize its operations to reduce the impacts associated with its activities: raw materials, water, energy, waste, and so on. The ISO 14001 standard is based on the Deming Cycle and its four key steps (plan, do, check, act), which are designed to achieve continuous improvement.
The ISO 14001 standard lists 18 requirements divided into 6 chapters:
- General requirements
- Environmental policy
- Planning
- Implementation of actions to comply with environmental policy
- Controls and corrective actions
- The management review
Revised in 2015, ISO 14001 now incorporates the High-Level Structure (HLS), which provides a common framework for all management system standards, thereby facilitating the implementation of integrated management systems (with ISO 9001, for example).
It also strengthens the role of management and takes better account of the broader issues (economic, social, etc.) within which the organization operates. Finally, it incorporates the “life cycle perspective” of an organization’s activities, products, or services, thereby fostering a cross-functional and multidisciplinary approach that leads to eco-design.
ISO 14001 certification: a commitment to environmental progress
The environmental manager and/or quality manager plans, develops, and oversees the day-to-day operations of the ISO 14001 environmental management system. The Ecological Transition initiative also supports the ISO 14001 certification process. Depending on the organization (single-site or multi-site), the manager may need to organize environmental audits. These audits will be conducted by internal and external auditors to verify compliance with the requirements of the ISO 14001 standard.
Valid for three years, ISO 14001 certification is a voluntary initiative that demonstrates a company’s environmental responsibility to its customers and partners while strengthening the commitment of management and employees. ISO 14001 certification also provides a significant competitive and financial advantage, as evidenced by AFNOR Certification’s study on feedback from ISO 14001-certified organizations (PDF, 2018). In 2019, more than 312,000 ISO 14001 certificates were active worldwide, covering nearly 500,000 sites, according to the ISO Survey.
