Implementation of EMAS
Preparation and environmental overview
The first step in implementing an organization's environmental management system is the initial environmental inspection. In the course of this, the environmental performance of the organisation and its level are assessed. The main roles and contact persons, the registered office(s) of the organisation and the scope of the registration must also be defined. The commitment of the management must also be ensured.
In addition, the direct and indirect environmental aspects arising from operations and services must be identified and their impact on the environment assessed. The information collected during the environmental review (in particular, an overview of the most important environmental aspects) is the basis for the implementation of EMAS.
Important to know concerning this step
The implementation of EMAS requires the organisation to clearly define roles, responsibilities and contact points to ensure the functioning of the system and the flow of information. Well-defined roles help to ensure that the tasks of the environmental management system are shared, the responsibilities are clear, and the necessary information reaches the right people at the right time.
The responsibilities of the contact persons, including the management, the EMAS coordinator, the internal auditor, the verifier, the Environment Agency and other parties, can be found in Annex II of the EMAS Regulation (Section A.4.2), the EMAS Regulation Guide (Chapter 1.1) and the EMAS Implementation Interactive Guide.
When implementing EMAS, the organisation must first decide which establishments will be subject to the registration. The scope of the registration must cover all activities related to the selected site or sites and must be determined taking into account the organisation's field of activity, physical boundaries, compliance obligations and impact on the environment.
An organisation can register a single site with EMAS, several sites as a single registration or each site separately, depending on how similar or different their processes and environmental impacts are. When registering, the location of the sites must also be taken into account – EMAS can be joined by entities both inside and outside the EU.
When choosing the scope of registration, it is recommended to map all activities and processes and, if necessary, consult the competent authority and the EMAS verifier at an early stage to identify the most suitable solution.
Further guidance on the scope can be found in Annex II of the EMAS Regulation (Section A.4.3), the EMAS Guide (Chapter 1.1 to 1.2) and the EMAS Interactive Guide.
The implementation of EMAS requires the active commitment of the organisation's top management, as the principles of environmental management must be linked to the organisation's strategy, business model and day-to-day operations. Management must define clear roles and responsibilities, ensure the resources necessary for the system to function, and support employee engagement and awareness-raising.
The role of the management representative is to coordinate the implementation of EMAS, provide the management with an overview of the functioning of the system and ensure that the environmental management system complies with the requirements of EMAS at all times. If necessary, there may be several responsible persons, especially if the organisation operates in several locations or in different countries. Clearly defined roles help to ensure the effective functioning of EMAS and support continuous improvement throughout the organisation.
A more detailed overview of the role of management can be found in Annex II of the EMAS Regulation (Sections A.5.1, A.5.3 and B.2), the EMAS Regulation Guide (Chapter 1.3) and the EMAS Implementation Interactive Guide.
The purpose of the environmental review is to get an overview of the impact of the organisation's activities on the environment, to determine all important environmental aspects and to create a foundation for building an environmental management system.
The environmental overview shows how the organisation affects the environment, what the risks and opportunities are, and what topics need to be focused on in the future.
There are specific steps to focus on when preparing an environmental review:
- Describe the organisation's field of activity, size, location and environmental conditions (e.g. availability of water/energy, surroundings).
- Identify interested parties (e.g. customers, employees, municipality, supervisory authorities) and describe their expectations and needs (e.g. waste reduction, transparency of reporting, compliance with legal requirements).
- Prepare a list of environmental laws, regulations and requirementsthat apply to the organisation's activities and add information on how the organisation certifies their compliance.
- Identify direct and indirect environmental aspects. Identify any activities that may have an impact on the environment. Examples of direct environmental aspects include energy consumption, waste generation, emissions, water use and noise. Indirect environmental aspects include, for example, the activities of suppliers and transport.
- Assess the importance of environmental aspects. For each aspect, its impact on the environment must be assessed, taking into account the magnitude of the impact, legal requirements and the opinion of stakeholders. This will help to draw up a list of important environmental aspects. Occupational safety and health issues must be excluded from this assessment and the focus should be solely on environmental impacts. Environmental aspects should be categorised according to their scope, severity, frequency, concerns of interested parties and legal requirements.
- Evaluate lessons learned from past environmental incidents and apply them to improve the system and prevent repeated errors.
- Map the main risks and opportunitiesthat affect the objectives of environmental activities.
- Review existing processes and identify what needs to be improved to create a functioning environmental management system.
- Prepare an environmental review report based on the results.
Recommendations for preparing an environmental review: - Involve employees who know the processes best.
- Small organisations can use EMAS Easy ecomapping.
- If a sector has been issued a sector reference document, it must be used to identify known environmental aspects and impacts.
The environmental overview must be documented, up-to-date and, if necessary, updated, especially if there are significant changes in the organisation's activities.
A tool that helps to describe the organisation's field of activity is available here.
The tool to assist in the assessment of environmental aspects is available here.
Further requirements are set out in Annex I and Annex II (Section B.3) of the EMAS Regulation. Further information on how to prepare an environmental review can also be found in the EMAS Regulation Guide (chapter 1.4) and the EMAS Implementation Interactive Guide.
References
Annex I of the EMAS Regulation (Environmental Review)
Annex II of the EMAS Regulation (Environmental Management System Requirements)
EMAS Annex III (Internal Environmental Audit)
Annex IV of the EMAS Regulation (environmental reporting)
Annex V of the EMAS Regulation (EMAS logo)
Annex VI of the EMAS Regulation (information requirements for registration)
Annex VII of the EMAS Regulation (verifier's declaration of verification and validation)
Contacts
In case of any questions or to get advice, please contact the Environmental Agency. The Environmental Agency acts as the competent authority of EMAS in Estonia.