Techniques for a Successful Environmental Management System

Reading a wordy and complex thick guide on, say, reducing water consumption by a million gallons each day or implementing a process to lessen the amount of paint sludge in several company-owned factories, can quickly get in the way of work. Work that prevents a firm from, well, working is undoubtedly not cost-effective and therefore inefficient. However, businesses that inescapably impact the environment with their day-to-day operations simply can’t quit enforcing an environmental management system (EMS) because it’s difficult to write and hard to comprehend. 

 

Simple, understandable, and positive. This is how the University of Queensland wanted their EMS. In a research study reported by the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, the country’s first university to acquire an environmental management system certification relayed that their desire to achieve a successful EMS was not borne from mere obligation, but rather stemmed from the university’s own wish to use all resources efficiently and enhance and protect campus environment through sustainable practices. 

 

This began with staff efforts at paper recycling, which eventually led to organization of an actual environmental program they called Unigreen. Afterwards, the University of Queensland pressed for an ISO 14001 accreditation as a means of setting an example for their suppliers and contractors, which they expected to be licensed also. 

 

The University of Queensland has some 50 sites spread out over in excess of 334,000 square metres, with lakes, gardens, roads, sewage treatment plants, an incinerator and a number of the facilities related to the university’s daily function. Suffice it to say having a staff of 5,000 and a student population of 28,000, the coverage of their EMS wasn’t about to be simple since it needed to incorporate a wide range of activities. 

 

But with the tenacity of the people assigned to execute the school’s EMS and keep it simple, understandable, and positive, the University of Queensland was able to think up a system which was easily grasped and still on target with their environmental aims. Even now, the university makes additional enhancements to its ISO 14001 certified EMS and sets new goals each year to help save costs and make use of more efficient procedures. 

 

Every business, whether it’s a university, a car manufacturer, or a construction company, may have a simple, easy to understand, and positive EMS without spending months composing it. An understandable EMS may also be produced without hiring pricey consultants who'll more than likely charge thousands of dollars. 

 

A reliable, expertly produced ISO 14001-compliant and straightforward EMS template is available through a reliable online provider of EMS templates. This relieves any organization from needing to draw up a burdensome and complicated EMS manual. There lies the initial key to an effective environmental management system. The rest will be up to the commitment of the company’s top administration and the commitment of its employees to uphold it.