The ISO 14001 certification is an award that is internationally recognised and looks into effective Environmental Management Systems (EMS). The award looks into ways that your business will remain in profit but it will also reduce the impact that it has on the environment.
The main areas in the ISO 14001 involve – in some way – the entire organisation and it includes general requirements, environmental policy, planning and operation, corrective action and management review.
Essentially this allows you and your work force to pin point any areas of the business that impact the environment in some way – no matter how small. After the initial identification you can then begin to understand the environmental laws that are relevant to your company and then look at ways that you can begin to reduce your impact on the environment. Your improvements will then be regularly assessed and if you comply with your improvement schedule then your company will be registered to ISO 14001.
The ISO 14001 classification is relevant to every business, from a single office to a multi-national company involved with all business sectors. Environmental classifications affect all businesses because environmental protection is becoming more and more important to everyone and the popularity of saving the environment is ever increasing. Along with this popularity has come a huge demand from governments – both national and local – customers, workers and members of trade organisations for businesses to reduce their impact on the environment.
Benefits
If your company’s environmental management system is certified ISO 14001 it means that it has been assessed by a third party, and been awarded the certification based on the fact that your company meets all of the requirements that were set out before assessment.
There are many benefits to having this certification including the fact that it is a commitment; the ISO 14001 is not an award that is awarded based on one set of requirements or guidelines. Once you have initially been given the classification you will then be given further improvements and on the next assessment you will only retain the classification if these have been met.
Caring for the environment is a huge thing nowadays and everyone is being more careful and being awarded the ISO 14001 shows that your business is too. This is not only a great certification to have in the business world but it could also enhance your reputation with your clients and customers, because you are showing that as a business, you care about your impact on the environment.
This article was written by environment agency worker Claire Steel, explaining the importance of iso 14001 classification.