Towards environmental management
Managing Director of Segestión Quality01/02/2006
Thus, the environmental management system provides the basis to track, measure and evaluate the performance of the company, in order to ensure that their operations are conducted in a manner consistent with applicable regulations and environmental policy that the company has defined.
EMS aims to:
- Be a source of economic benefits for the company, thanks to the optimization of the use of natural resources, the reduction of waste generated and the decrease in raw materials consumed.
- Integrate with other management systems, such as them of quality.
- Encourage the use of best available technology (known as BAT, Best Available Technology), where this is appropriate and economically viable.
An EMS is to be effective, it is essential that it will become a fully integrated management of the company factor, so that it require all staff, from top management until the last operator.
For this reason, to perform a correct environmental management is necessary to give a series of parameters:
- Define an environmental policy by the senior management, which will be disseminated both internally and externally.
- Set quantified targets and goals and establish the necessary means to achieve them.
- Deploy the appropriate organization and set responsibilities.
- Establish mechanisms and procedures to achieve the objectives.
- Acquire a commitment to continuous improvement.
- Comply with any rules applicable.
- Assess and monitor on an ongoing basis the existing environmental effects.
- Train workers, so that they understand the importance of properly conducting the activities that have environmental impact.
- Establish operational control procedures to reduce the environmental impact of activities.
- Define and implement best management practices.
- Record and document all aspects related to environmental management.
- The system undergo regular, internal and external audits.
- Informing workers, management and public in general.
Carry out a proper environmental management is becoming today an increasingly more widespread practice among enterprises, fruit of a progressive change of mentality, that the management of the environment is not seen as an expense for the company, but as a source of benefits and savings, as well as an element of competitiveness.
The main benefits to be obtained are:
- Greater ease of adaptation to the most demanding legislation and the requirements of the customers.
- Compliance with the environmental legislation comprises both formal aspects (municipal licensing, environmental permits, regulatory controls,...), as material aspects (emission levels, technical requirements,...). It must also consider standards of customers, whose demand can be variable.
- EMS facilitates compliance with formal obligations and materials required by the applicable environmental legislation and its adaptation to possible changes.
- Reduce risks arising legal breaches and damage to the environment.
- It is a direct consequence of the ease to adapt to the rules, which entails:
- Avoid fines and penalties.
- Avoid lawsuits.
- Avoid legal costs.
- Reduce the risk of demand for civil and criminal liability.
- Improve relations with the public administration, which is reflected in two fundamental aspects:
- It favors the possibility of receiving government assistance in carrying out environmental measures.
- It facilitates the granting of permits and licences.
- It is easily understandable that the Administration should support those companies that show a desire for improvement and commitment to the environment.
Ultimately, the implementation of an EMS represents the replacement of expensive solutions of last minute for the protection of the environment by integrated procedures that lead to a preventive protection of the environment and, at the same time, behave better performance of the activity and an increase in competitiveness.
