A CNET editorial in January 2006 posed the question, "Is environmental compliance the next Sarbanes-Oxley?"

Since then, of course, corporate eco-friendliness and sustainability have skyrocketed in importance. In a global McKinsey survey announced last week, consumers claimed that a corporation's performance in addressing the problems of the environment "affects not only how much they trust the company but also whether they would buy its products."

So now is as good a time as any to readdress ISO 14001:2004, the purpose of which is to help all types of organizations improve their environmental performance. This environmental management standard is an internationally accepted specification created by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to help organizations minimize how their operations affect the environment and comply with related laws, regulations and requirements.

Specifically, it specifies a set of environmental management requirements for environmental management systems (EMS).

This act “does not itself state specific environmental performance criteria,” the ISO Web site is quick to point out:

ISO 14001:2004 specifies requirements for an environmental management system to enable an organization to develop and implement a policy and objectives which take into account legal requirements and other requirements to which the organization subscribes, and information about significant environmental aspects. It applies to those environmental aspects that the organization identifies as those which it can control and those which it can influence.

(Note: ISO 14004:2004, the second standard in the ISO 14000 family, provides guidelines on the elements of an EMS and its implementation, and discusses principal issues involved.)

Fulfilling these requirements demands objective evidence that can be audited to demonstrate the EMS is operating effectively in conformity to the standard.

Some of the key EMS elements include the following:

• Implementation and Operation — to control and improve operational activities that are critical from an environmental perspective, including both products and services of an organization;

• Checking and Corrective Action — including the monitoring, measurement and recording of the characteristics and activities that can have a significant impact on the environment; and

• Management Review — review of the EMS by the organization's top management to ensure its continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness.

The entire EMS criteria can be found at the ISO Web site. Not surprisingly, ISO will only tout the benefits derived from adopting an EMS strategy to meet 14001 criteria. Indeed, some of these benefits sound great on paper, including:

• Maintaining good public/community relations;
• Satisfying investor criteria and improving access to capital;
• Improving cost control;
• Reducing incidents that result in liability; and
• Conserving input materials and energy.

But an interesting case study, published online at Science Direct in 2004 — the year that ISO 14001 was revised from its 1996 version — and in the Journal of Cleaner Production a year later describes pitfalls to which companies may fall prey during implementation of the ISO 14001 standard, as well as their effects on the environmental performance of certified companies. In short, the research found that:

...even companies seriously committed to the fulfillment of the standard can still accidentally fall prey to cognitive decision traps [...] and the myths regarding the effectiveness of the ISO 14001 standard are often far from reality.

The study goes on to offer a set of guidelines that companies should consider following to avoid the most serious ISO 14001 "decision traps," as well as recommendations for the next ISO 14001 review.

Of the many ISO 14001 success stories that exist, one example is digital imaging company Canon U.S.A., which recently announced that it received a 2008 Energy Star Award in Product Labeling. The award recognizes the company’s commitment to consistently labeling Energy Star-qualified office products with the highest possible degree of accuracy. "All of its facilities in Canon U.S.A. and Canon Canada headquarters received ISO 14001 Certification under Canon’s Global ISO 14001 Certification Initiative in October 2007.

Energy Star is the joint effort of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Energy (DOE) designed to identify and promote energy-efficient products to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Consumers and employees are increasingly demanding environmental responsibility from organizations across industries. As such, companies should consider reevaluating ISO 14001:2004, which provides the requirements for an EMS, and ISO 14004:2004, which gives general EMS guidelines.

Resources

Environmental Compliance: The Next Sarbanes-Oxley?
by Chris Smith
CNET News, Jan. 10, 2006

Addressing Consumer Concerns About Climate Change
by Sheila M. J. Bonini, Greg Hintz and Lenny T. Mendonca
The McKinsey Quarterly, March 2008

ISO 14001:2004
International Organization for Standardization

What Are the Key Elements of an ISO 14001 EMS?
International Organization for Standardization

Decision Traps in ISO 14001 Implementation Process: Case Study Results from Illinois Certified Companies
by Alessia Ghisellinia and Deborah L. Thurston
Science Direct (2004) - The Journal of Cleaner Production, June 2005

Canon U.S.A. Receives Its 10th Energy Star(R) Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy
Canon U.S.A., March 6, 2008