March 2011
The environment and the various standards, ISO 14001, BS8555, EMAS and the Acorn scheme, that you can achieve to prove that you are doing your bit can lead to confusion and in that confusion it is easy to end up doing nothing.
What is easier to understand are the energy costs? None of us are immune to the rising petrol prices and the higher prices of goods in the shops as a result. That coupled with the fact that more and more businesses are moving over to having their water metered, means that there is even more that we can influence and more savings are possible through using environmental management systems.
There are few things to think about before you start. Firstly which standard are you looking to achieve, and what standards do you already have. If you have nothing in place right now then starting with BS 8555 might be the best option, as this is a step by step approach, six steps in total and each step is rewarded by a certificate. If you already have the quality standard ISO 9001 and or the Occupational Health and Safety Standard, ISO 18001 then gaining ISO 14001 is an easy step to take as many of the requirements are the same.
Regardless of your starting point, from an existing system or from nothing, finding out more and training you staff will probably be on the agenda, so arm yourself with knowledge.
There are many courses that can help with this, e.g. the Foundation course for ISO 14001 explain what is in the standard and what the steps that are required when setting up a system. Some of these can be carried out easily, e.g. accessing regulations from the various government web sites, others may require some assistance, typically identifying environmental aspects. For each of us however, with our varying levels of current knowledge, we may find the assistance we need to be different and it may well be easier than you think!
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