ISO 14001 Is Just About Recycling… Isn’t It?

17 Dec, 2019

Once upon a time, you would often find an auditor routing through your skip at an ISO 14001 audit to check for your recycling.  Whilst the reduce, reuse and recycle ethos is still a major factor of the Environmental Management System, it covers so much more than ‘just recycling’, yet this perception still remains.

Rewind to 2015…

Every five to eight years the International Standards are reviewed by all the ISO member bodies who decide whether a Standard needs revising to bring it back up to date.  Back in 2015, ISO 14001 was one of those standards which saw significant improvements to bring environmental impact to centre stage.  Key improvements included increased prominence of environmental management within strategic planning, greater input from leadership and a stronger commitment to proactive initiatives.

Nearly four years later, ISO 14001 couldn’t be more fitting with the times! Our environmental impact, whether personal or business, has been big news of late and it seems that many are trying to find ways to reduce it.

More than ‘Just Recycling’

When we think of reducing our environmental impact, it’s easy to focus on the visible things such as recycling but what about the invisible such as water pollution? ISO 14001 requires businesses to consider all environmental issues relating to their operations, examples include:

• Air pollution
  Do you have company vehicles that contribute to the greenhouse gas emissions?

• Water and sewage issues
  You may be responsible for leaks and blockages if they’re located in and around your property.  Failure to act could lead to flooding or pollution incidents.

• Waste management
  It is your responsibility to keep waste to a minimum by doing everything you can to prevent, reuse, recycle or recover waste.

• Soil contamination
  Land can be contaminated by heavy metals, oils, chemical substances, asbestos etc.  You will be held responsible for the contamination if it has been caused by yourselves.

• Climate change mitigation and adaption
  ISO 14001 supports advancement and continual improvement.  By putting measures in place to cut or prevent emissions of greenhouse gases, we are helping to limit the scale of future global warming.

• Resource use and efficiency
  Managing your resources and preventing and reducing waste can help save you money.

Next steps…

If you’re interested in ISO 14001 but not sure if it’s right for your business, you can book on to our training course to learn more. The course is suitable for those considering implementation as well as those involved in its day to day running.

If you’re ready to start your journey to ISO 14001, please contact our team on 0330 058 5551 to talk through your requirements or alternatively, complete our ‘Request a Quote’ form on our website.

Halfway there with ISO 9001

If you already implement the ISO 9001 Quality Management System, you’re already half way there, making implementing ISO 14001 even easier.

Find out how Cavendish Joinery added ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 to their existing ISO 9001 management system is less than four weeks here.