The publication of ISO 14031 and its sister, ISO/TR (Technical Report)
14032: Environmental Management Examples of Environmental Performance
Evaluation (EPE) brings a long and arduous process to a close; one which has
taxed experts from all over the world since June 1993.
As a guideline, ISO 14031 has not been designed for certification purposes.
Rather, the increasing importance of the verification of environmental data
as part of environmental reporting, eco-labelling and carbon emission
trading might foster the consideration of ISO 14031 principles during such
verification processes.
Organisations such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), which develops
guidelines for sustainability reporting as part of a global consultation
process, and the WBCSD with its work on Eco- Efficiency Indicators, have all
drawn on the framework of ISO 14031. In Taiwan, the government is using EPE
for industry sector assessment, resource efficiency measurement and
self-auditing/ analytical tools for industry. Comprehensive ISO 14031 pilot
projects have been conducted, particularly in Germany and Scandinavia, and
recently the DTI has approved an ISO 14031 pilot project as outlined at
the end of this article.
EPE is defined in the standard as a ‘process to facilitate management
decisions regarding an organization’s environmental performance by selecting
indicators, collecting and analyzing data, assessing information against
environmental performance criteria, reporting and communicating, and
periodically reviewing and improving this process’.
What, then, is ISO 14031 actually about? Some key features: ISO 14031
describes a plan/do/check/act approach; it does not set absolute performance
requirements; and, designed as a management tool for use within an
organisation, it has three distinct indicators: MPIs (Management Performance
Indicators), OPIs (Operational Performance Indicators) and ECIs
(Environmental Condition Indicators).
Like ISO 14001, 14031 focuses on activities, products and services that an
organisation has control over or influence on. It recommends the
consideration of the views of interested parties for the purpose of the
selection of indicators. And, notably, it talks about ‘should’ in the
context of internal communication, and ‘may wish to include’ in the context
of external reporting and communication.
International experiences
The focus of the standard has been reflected in many of the case studies
published in ISO 14032.
A Malaysian rubber glove manufacturer, for example, which used ISO 14031 as
a starting point for an EMS, organised its selection
of indicators around its key interested parties, which included the
Department of the Environment, export markets, water treatment plant
operators, top management and the local community. Understanding the views
of these parties critical to the success
of the company helps an organisation to add value to the business and at
the same time fulfil its
environmental obligations. Some companies used MPIs to track EMS
implementation or continual improvement of EMS and
the related impact on operational performance improvement
and environmental condition
indicators.
Most of the German EPE pilot project companies found the product related
indicators to be very useful in the management of environmental and business
objectives, driven by the needs of their customers.
DTI sponsored pilot project
In the UK, the DTI has provided funding for the first stage of an EPE
research project, which aims to develop EPE methodology in line with ISO
14031 and to investigate effectiveness across organisations of differing
scale, significance and function, while developing reliable methodologies
and testing alternative applications for the principles outlined in the
guidelines. The project, managed by 14000 & ONE Solutions Ltd, will take a
practical approach, working closely with 10 UK companies ranging from large
multi-nationals through to small and medium sized enterprises, between them
supplying a diverse variety of products and services. Seven of the companies
involved in the project will be suppliers to one principal participant.
In addition to assessing the ISO 14031 approach in enhancing the
effectiveness of existing formal environmental management systems (e.g. as
specified under ISO 14001) and in the development of reporting practices,
the project has identified a number of alternative applications or
conditions under which to test the guidelines, including supply chain
management, benchmarking environmental performance either internally or by
external stakeholders, and to provide reliable indicators of environmental
risk.
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