Page 42 - The Handbook for Quality Management a Complete Guide to Operational Excellence

28 B u s i n e s s - I n t e g r a t e d Q u a l i t y S y s t e m s T h e Q u a l i t y F u n c t i o n 29

company’s EMS. ISO 14001 is not a requirement; it is voluntary. ISO 14001
is a systems-based standard that gives companies a blueprint for man-
aging their impact on the environment.
The requirements fall into five main areas:

• Senior management shall articulate the company’s environmental
policy. The policy will include commitments toward pollution
preven tion and continuous improvement of the EMS. The policy
will be avail able to the public.
• Consistent with the environmental policy, you shall establish and
main tain procedures to identify significant environmental aspects
and their associated impacts. Procedures should include legal and
other require ments. Objectives and targets will also be documented,
including continual improvement and pollution prevention.
• Each employee’s role and position must be clearly defined, and all
employees must be aware of the impact of their work on the
environ ment. Employees shall be adequately trained.
• The EMS should be set up to facilitate internal communication. To
that end, all relevant documentation should be easily available
and usable, in either print or electronic form.
• Organizations must continually monitor and document their
environ mental effects and periodically review them to ensure
continual improvement and the effectiveness of the EMS.
Management is respon sible for an internal review of the EMS on a
regular basis.

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