790 Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

Policy Statements

An EMS begins with a strong environmental policy statement. The policy statement lays the groundwork for the EMS planning phase. It describes the company's approach to managing its environmental affairs and reflects its commitment to protecting human health and the environment.

It acts as a contract between the personnel of the organization and company stakeholders. To help ensure an effective EMS, top management should pledge complete support and make a commitment to provide whatever resources are needed.

Developing an environmental policy helps to lay the groundwork for the EMS planning phase. In addition to the environmental policy, successful EMS implementation also requires:

1. Ensuring that management is prepared to provide active support,
2. Forming a multi-disciplinary EMS implementation team, and
3. Holding a facility kick-off meeting to prepare everyone to implement the EMS.

Sample Environmental Policy Statements

EMS policy statements vary greatly, depending on the size and nature of the business. Here are a few samples for smaller companies:

• "Our Company is committed to continual improvement using the EMS"
• "We will continually improve our environmental performance through the use of our EMS by..."

For larger public- and private-sector organizations, the following policy statement might be used:

• In support of our company's commitment to the EMS, we will:
• Ensure compliance by meeting or exceeding all applicable environmental requirements.
• Strive to continuously improve environmental performance in terms of both regulated and unregulated environmental impacts.
• Employ source reduction and other pollution prevention approaches whenever practicable.
• Require consideration of environmental factors when making purchasing and operating decisions.
• Establish, track and review specific environmental performance goals.
• Share information on environmental performance with the public and allow appropriate opportunities for input into EMS development and implementation.

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