EMAS regulation / Ecology-oriented management economics

» Economics » Ecology-oriented management economics » Topics begins with E » EMAS regulation

Page modified: Friday, June 23, 2006 20:47:50

EMAS is well-known the abbreviation for E'co management and audit S'cheme, also as European or audit. EMAS was developed by the European union and is a community system from environmental management and environmental audit of operating results for organizations, which want to improve their environmental achievement. The EMAS regulation audit regulation) measures during the accomplishment of its direct and indirect impact on the environment a crucial role to the sole responsibility out of the economy.

Auditing

At EMAS participating organizations have to publish once per year an environmental explanation, to report in that them among other things on their effects on the environment (direct or indirect), its environmental achievement and its environmental goals. The environmental explanation is examined by an independent environmental consultant for its correctness. At the latest every 3 among other things years examines the environmental consultant in the context of the so-called large Revalidierung the environmental management system, the adherence to the environmental policy as well as the adherence to the legal regulations (legally compliance). Organizations, which are successful with the audit, thus annual validating of the environmental explanation and/or three-year validating of their environmental management system accomplish, in a list are led (in Germany at responsible the Chambers of Commerce and industrie) and to be allowed the EMAS Logo to lead.

Development EMAS

With the regulation (EEC) No. 1836/93 of the advice from 29 June 1993 over the freiwillige participation of commercial enterprises in a community system for the environmental management and the environmental audit of operating results was provided for the first time by the European Union a concept, with whose assistance an assistance should be given to commercial enterprises for improvement their environmental achievements. Basis for this regulation is the fifth environmental scheme of the European community from 1 February 1993, in which by new environmentalpolitical instruments an improvement of the environmental condition should be achieved. In order to be able to judge the effectiveness of the EMAS regulation, step an examination of the regulation was specified after 5 years after its in Kraft. On 30 October 1998 the first suggestion of the commission for a revised EMAS regulation was present, which after repeated revision and the employment of a mediation committee finally on 14 February 2001 by the European parliament and by the advice one approved of. On 24 April 2001 at present valid regulation (EEC) became No. 761/2001 of the European parliament and the advice of 19. March 2001 over the freiwillige participation of organizations in a community system for the environmental management and the environmental audit of operating results (EMAS) in the Official Journal of the European communities publishes. This regulation is designated briefly as EMAS II and came into force on 27 April 2001.

Advancement - EMAS II

A goal of the old like the new EMAS regulation is the continuous improvement of the environmental achievement of an enterprise. With EMAS II one tried to eliminate the main points of criticism EMAS. Among other things there were the following changes:

Extension of the existing range of application (commercial enterprises) on so-called organizations. Those are societies, bodies, enterprises, enterprises, authorities or a mechanism and/or parts or combination of it, with or without juridical personality, publicly or privately, with own functions and own administration.
The improvement of the connection to the industrial standard ISO 14001 the condition specified there became to the environmental management a component of EMAS II.
Enterprises with different locations can be validated now in a procedure.

Conversion to Germany

In Germany substantial parts of the EMAS regulation are converted by the environmental audit law (UAG). In the UAG among other things the permission and supervision system for the environmental consultants are regulated. In addition it constitutes the environmental panel of experts (UGA), which the task has, the Federal Ministry of Environment in an advisory manner in the range of this freiwilligen audit to to promote guidelines for the application of the environmental audit law too issued and the spreading of EMAS in the federal territory. In the UGA the following groups of interests are represented: Economics, environmental consultant, environmental and restaurant economics of the federation and the countries, trade unions and environmental federations. The 25 honorary members are supported in their work and their commitment by a full-time office with seat in Berlin.

Spreading

The number of the organizations, after EMAS to validate leave themselves is declining. "The high point "of the EMAS validating lay in the years 2001 and 2002, whereby still Germany has most EMAS validating compared with other European countries. In Germany altogether 1,517 organizations (with 1.935 locations) are validated after EMAS. There is European-wide 3,275 organizations (conditions 16.03.2006, see here).

The reasons for the decrease of the validating are multilayered, might however essentially be because of the following aspects:

Lacking one international acceptance of EMAS. The international standard ISO 14001 is world-wide recognized, EMAS however is limited to the European Union.
The moreover one EMAS II on an environmental management system develops according to ISO 14001 and extends so the requirements, without generating for the enterprises additional (economic) use.

In particular in Germany to the participating enterprises on the part of the policy easements (e.g. more self-monitoring) and financial incentives (partial renouncement of fees) one promised. These incentives apply meanwhile in the majority of the Lands of the Federal Republic, came however possibly too late. Whether EMAS costs an enterprise actually more than ISO 14001 is disputed, particularly since the number of obligation audit days might rise because of increasing requirements rather. The recent guideline of the European Union to public assignment (2004/18/EG) gives clearly preference, which is to contribute to the further spreading to enterprises with EMAS.

Specialization

Following the environmental audit after the EMAS regulation in the Evangelist regional church in the environmental audit "the Green developed Gockel". It is particularly co-ordinated with the basic conditions and the structure of a church municipality. The upper stage center office economy and services made of Berlin developed an extensive, action-oriented instruction project about audit" that the training more near brings the sense and purpose of the procedure. Download here.

Literature

Graduate student network audit registered association (Hrsg.): Environmental management systems between requirement and reality. An interdisciplinary argument with the and the DIN EN ISO 14001. Springer publishing house, Berlin Heidelberg 1998, ISBN 3-540-64690-6
Gastl: Continuous improvement in the environmental management. The KVP demand of the ISO 14001 in theory and enterprise practice. Vdf publishing house, Zurich, 2005, ISBN 3-7281-3034-6. www.cmrg.ch/kvp-publikation.htm.