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Environmental Management System
Standard Criteria | Small Business Criteria | Site Visits | Annual Performance Reporting| Independent Assessment
Performance Track facilities must have an Environmental Management System (EMS) that includes the five elements listed below and has gone through at least one full plan-do-check-act implementation cycle (typically a one-year timeframe). During the application process, facilities must certify that they have had an assessment of their EMS in accordance with the Performance Track Independent Assessment Policy. Under this policy, all new applicants to the Performance Track program must have had their EMS independently assessed within the two years prior to the date of application. Thereafter, all members of Performance Track must have an independent assessment of their EMS every three years.
Recognizing that the scope and formality of an EMS varies with a facility's nature, size, and complexity, EPA created a Resource Center to help facilities develop EMSs meeting the Performance Track criteria. The Resource Center also provides general information on effective environmental management and sustainable business practices. EPA's experience with a variety of programs suggests that its EMS elements are within the capability of small facilities and can be met through various approaches. Small facilities can obtain guidance from several EPA websites, such as Performance Track, the Sector Strategies program, the Small Business Gateway, and EPA's EMS website.
Performance Track EMS Elements
Performance Track facilities must have an EMS with the following five elements:
A written environmental policy, defined by top management, committing the facility to:
- Compliance with legal requirements and
voluntary commitments.
- Pollution prevention (based on a pollution prevention hierarchy
where source reduction is the first choice).
- Continuous improvement in environmental
performance, including areas not subject to
regulations.
Additionally, the facility should commit to sharing information on environmental performance with the community.
- Identification of significant environmental
aspects1 and legal requirements,
including procedures for integrating anticipated changes to the
facility's requirements or commitments in the EMS.
- Measurable objectives and targets to meet policy
commitments and legal requirements, to reduce the
facility's significant environmental impacts, and to
meet the performance goals set as part of the
facility's participation in Performance Track. In setting
objectives and targets, the facility should consider preventing
non-compliance, preventing pollution at its source,
minimizing cross-media pollutant transfers,
and
improving environmental performance.
- Active, documented programs to meet objectives, targets, and commitments in the EMS, including the means and time frames for their completion.
1. "Environmental aspects" are elements of a facility's activities, products, or services that can interact with the environment. Facilities are asked to use their list of significant environmental aspects in selecting performance goals under Performance Track.
- Development of established roles and responsibilities to meet
objectives and targets of the overall EMS and compliance with
legal requirements, including a top management representative
with authority and responsibility for the EMS.
- Defined procedures to:
- Achieve and maintain compliance and
meet performance objectives;
- Communicate relevant information about
the EMS, including the facility's environmental
performance, throughout the organization;
- Provide appropriate incentives for personnel
to meet the EMS requirements; and
- Control documents, including where documents
related to the EMS will be located and who will
maintain them.
- Achieve and maintain compliance and
meet performance objectives;
- General environmental training programs for all
employees, and specific training for those with responsibilities
involving activities directly related to achieving objectives
and targets and compliance with legal requirements.
- Documented key EMS elements, including the environmental policy,
significant environmental indicators, objectives and targets,
a top management representative, compliance audit, EMS audit
program, and overall EMS authority.
- Operation and maintenance programs for equipment
and for other operations that are related to legal
compliance and other significant environmental
indicators.
- An emergency preparedness program.
Checking and Corrective Action
An active program for:
- Assessing performance and preventing
and detecting non-conformance with legal and other requirements
of the EMS, including an established compliance audit program
and an EMS audit program.
- Ensuring prompt, corrective action of any non-conformance with legal requirements and other EMS requirements.
- Documented management review of performance
against the established objectives and targets and
the effectiveness of the EMS in meeting policy
commitments.
- A facility will retain EMS documents and provide a summary of its performance, including performance against objectives and targets, and a summary of the results of compliance and EMS audits, in its Annual Performance Report.