Comparison between eco-management and audit scheme and ISO 14001:2015

Abstract

Traditional approaches to protect environment usually rely on a legal framework that enforces measures and behaviors on organizations. However, to achieve sustainability it is necessary to apply other tools that need a stronger commitment from the organizations in the three pillars of sustainable development. The implementation of an Environmental Management System, being a voluntary instrument, can play an important role in the environmental pillar because it has a structured approach to manage environmental aspects of organizations. The new revisions of the two most important standards maintain the previous pattern. EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme) incorporates the requirements of ISO 14001:2015 while maintaining important additional requirements such as the Environmental Statement and the employee involvement. The new revision of ISO 14001 by emphasizing organizational environmental performance can be a significant opportunity to increase sustainability given the fact that this international standard is more widely implemented than EMAS.