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New FY2006 EPA National Program Guidance for Performance Track
The Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation (OPEI) has issued FY2006 National Program Guidance for the National Environmental Performance Track program (PDF, 11 pp., 82K). This guidance is primarily used by the Regions to help implement national priorities. In consultation with EPA’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer and National Program Managers (NPMs), OPEI also has integrated references to Performance Track and two other priority innovations -- Environmental Management Systems and the Environmental Results Program – into the guidance issued by EPA’s national programs.
Performance Track is one of three priority innovations endorsed by the Innovation Action Council (IAC) for “scale-up,” (i.e., full scale implementation). The other two innovations are Environmental Management Systems and the Environmental Results Program. The IAC also recommended integrating these three priority innovations in the Agency Planning, Budgeting, and Accountability System.
The Office of Policy, Economics, and Innovation (OPEI) responded to the IAC recommendation by issuing FY2006 EPA National Guidance for Performance Track. In consultation with the Office of the Chief Financial Officer and the five Agency National Program Managers (i.e., air, water, waste, pesticides/toxics, and enforcement/compliance assurance), OPEI also developed two other means for integrating these three priority innovations into the Final FY2006 Guidance for the five National Program Offices.
In summary, the various means for integrating Performance Track, Environmental Management Systems, and the Environmental Results Program into FY2006 Program Guidance include:
- The creation of new OPEI National Guidance for the Performance Track program with associated regional commitments in this Guidance.
- The integration into the final Guidance for each National Program Manager a general reference to the three priority innovations and their IAC endorsement, as well as specific activity references to these priority innovations if appropriate.
Following is a brief description of the three priority innovations.
Performance Track
Launched in 2000, Performance Track is the Agency’s flagship innovation program for recognizing facilities that consistently exceed regulatory requirements, address unregulated environmental issues, and produce measurable environmental results. This voluntary program is based on the premise that government should complement existing programs with new tools and strategies that not only protect people and the environment, but also capture opportunities for reducing cost and spurring technological innovation.
To qualify, facilities must have a record of sustained compliance and a comprehensive, facility-wide environmental management system. They also must commit to and publicly report on improvement in (typically) four environmental indicators. Currently, there are approximately 350 Performance Track member facilities. Details on the Performance Track Program can be found at http://www.epa.gov/performancetrack.
Environmental Management System
An Environmental Management System (EMS) is a set of processes and practices that enable an organization to systematically manage and reduce its environmental impacts and increase its operating efficiency. EMSs are primarily constructed according to the "Plan (e.g., identifying environmental aspects and goals), Do (e.g., implementing), Check (e.g., corrective action and monitoring), Act (e.g., reviewing)" model. By limiting environmental impacts and increasing environmental efficiency, EMSs also afford businesses opportunities to address non-regulatory environmental issues such as energy efficiency and resource conservation.
Consistent with the principles of quality management, EMSs aid in the achievement of business goals such as goal setting, work practices, employee training, records management, emergency preparedness, organizational structure, and continuous improvement. EPA will achieve full implementation of EMSs for all facilities by December 31, 2005. Details on the EMSs can be found at http://www.epa.gov/ems.
Environmental Results Program
The Environmental Results Program (ERP) is an integrated system of compliance assistance, self-certification, and statistically-based performance measurement first created by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection for small business sectors. The multimedia ERP approach replaces facility-specific State permits with industry-wide environmental performance standards and annual certifications of compliance which supplement the State’s traditional compliance inspection and compliance assistance efforts. Compliance assistance is conducted through outreach and sector-specific workbooks that contain regulatory requirements for all media as well as pollution prevention best practices. ERPs include an annual self-certification of compliance by companies to increase awareness and accountability. They also include a statistically-based performance measurement methodology to track results, determine priorities, and inform strategic targeting of inspections and future compliance assistance efforts. For more information on ERPs, see http://www.epa.gov/permits.