What is EMAS and is it suitable for my organisation?
What should I consider when starting EMAS?
Starting with EMAS will help the organisation to make its environmental management clearer and more effective. In the case of conscious planning, it is possible to approach the process gradually and taking into account the organization's capabilities. This step outlines the main topics that should be considered before starting the process, including the costs involved in implementing EMAS, possible support measures, the legal framework and the considerable time involved. They will help to develop a realistic picture of how the implementation of EMAS could work in the organisation and what support can be used.
Important to know concerning this step
The costs involved in implementing EMAS depend on the size of the organisation, the sector in which it operates and the level of environmental management in place. The costs are generally divided as follows:
- costs including validation and verification fees;
- costs related to the time spent by employees and other internal resources necessary for implementation;
- costs related to the involvement of external consultants or experts.
You can read more about the costs Interactive Guide to the Implementation of EMAS.
In EU Member States, EMAS registration may be subject to an additional fee, but there is no EMAS registration fee in Estonia. An overview of possible registration fees in the Member States can be found here.
You can apply for support from the circular economy programme of the Environmental Investment Centre (EIC) to support the implementation of EMAS in your organisation.
Information on the support measures related to the introduction of green technologies can be found on the website of Estonian Business and Innovation Agency and on the website of the EIC.
If the organisation wishes to use the help of external consultants in the implementation of EMAS, it is recommended that at least one involved consultant has joined the Good Practice of Environmental Management Consultants of the Estonian Association for Environmental Management (EKJA).
The Good Practice List of advisory services for environmental management systems and environmental management tools includes consulting companies and organisations that have submitted the required form to the Environmental Management Development Committee of EKJA to prove their competence and are guided by the principles of Good Practice in their activities.
The list of good practices includes consulting companies and organisations that provide advisory services for environmental management systems here.
One of the prerequisites for the implementation of EMAS is to demonstrate that the organisation's environmental management system complies with the requirements of the EMAS Regulation. To this end, a verification audit is carried out, which can be read in more detail in the following sub-service implementation of EMAS.
External verification must be carried out by an accredited EMAS verifier.
Information about EMAS certifiers accredited in Estonia can be found here and about EMAS certifiers accredited in Europe can be found here.
The European Commission offers the opportunity to subscribe to the EMAS newsletter to receive regular updates on important changes, guidance materials, best practices and new initiatives. The newsletter will be sent to your registered email address and will help you keep up to date with EMAS developments and support opportunities.
The European Commission's website also provides information on EMAS-related events.
The implementation of EMAS is based on the European Union's EMAS Regulation, which is the main legal basis for the entire EMAS environmental management system.
Familiarisation with the EMAS Regulation and its substantive understanding is essential for the implementation of the system.
The requirements of the regulation are explained in more detail in the EMAS Regulation Guide.
On average, it takes one year from the start of EMAS implementation to EMAS registration, while for small and medium-sized organisations the process may be shorter and for larger organisations it may be more time-consuming.
The duration of the process also depends on whether the company has already implemented an environmental management system in accordance with ISO 14001 or how much time the company has to deal with the process consistently.
The estimated time required for the process can be found Interactive Guide to the Implementation of EMAS.
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.