ISO 14000 - the International Environmental Management Standard: Potential impacts on environmental management and auditing in the electric power generation industry
- Gauntlett Group, Inc., San Francisco, CA (United States)
- SCS Engineers, Long Beach, CA (United States)
In the framework of environmental management, the concept of voluntary environmental compliance auditing is not in itself a new development. Environmentally conscious firms have for more than a decade, undertaken voluntary audits to help achieve and maintain compliance with environmental regulations and to help identify and correct unregulated or poorly regulated environmental hazard. The firms undertaking the audits were motivated by a desire to mitigate legal and financial risks and/or the desire to be a highly responsible member of the corporate community. Much of the early attention to environmental auditing was in the chemical process industries. Today, there are four current trends affecting environmental auditing: (1) the practice is becoming widespread in all industry groups in both large and small firms; (2) environmental management and audit methodolgies and approaches are being codified in the form of written national and International standards; (3) environmental management programs and in-house audits are increasingly being certified by independent auditors (who are not associated with regulatory agencies); and (4) the certifications are being viewed as marketing and public relations tools. The adoption of ISO 14000 is destined to become the most significant development in international environmental management and auditing. International standards for the development of Environmental Management Systems and the execution of environmental audits do not currently exist. Individual countries, such as England and France, have national standards. One multi-national standard currently exists--the European Economic Community`s Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). The United States does not have a national environmental management and auditing standard.
- OSTI ID:
- 405428
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-951208-; TRN: 97:000639
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Power-Gen America `95: power generation conference, Anaheim, CA (United States), 5-7 Dec 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of Power-Gen `95. Book II: Environmental issues. Volume 1 - regulations & environmental. Volume 2 - compliance & operational strategies. Volume 3 - environmental technologies; PB: 436 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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