ISO 14031 pdf download.Environmental management — Environmental performance evaluation — Guidelines
1 Scope
This International Standard gives guidance on the design and use of environmental performance evaluation within an organization. It is applicable to all organizations, regardless of type, size, location and complexity. This International Standard does not establish environmental performance levels. It is not intended for use as a specification standard for certification or registration purposes or for the establishment of any other environmental management system conformance requirements.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this International Standard, the following terms and definitions apply. 2.1 environment surroundings in which an organization operates, including air, water, land, natural resources, flora, fauna, humans, and their interrelation NOTE Surroundings in this context extend from within an organization to the global system. [ISO 1 4001 :1 996] 2.2 environmental aspect element of an organization’s activities, products or services that can interact with the environment NOTE A significant environmental aspect is an environmental aspect that has or can have a significant environmental impact. [ISO 1 4001 :1 996] 2.3 environmental condition indicator ECI specific expression that provides information about the local, regional, national or global condition of the environment NOTE “Regional” may refer to a state, a province, or a group of states within a country, or it may refer to a group of countries or a continent, depending on the scale of the condition of the environment that the organization chooses to consider. 2.4 environmental impact any change to the environment, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partially resulting from an organization’s activities, products or services [ISO 1 4001 :1 996]2.5 environmental management system EMS the part of the overall management system that includes organizational structure, planning activities, responsibilities, practices, procedures, processes and resources for developing, implementing, achieving, reviewing and maintaining the environmental policy [ISO 1 4001 :1 996] 2.6 environmental objective overall environmental goal, arising from the environmental policy, that an organization sets itself to achieve, and which is quantified where practicable [ISO 1 4001 :1 996] 2.7 environmental performance results of an organization’s management of its environmental aspects NOTE 1 Environmental performance is defined differently in this International Standard than in ISO 1 4001:1 996 and ISO 1 4004:1 996. NOTE 2 In the context of environmental management systems, results may be measured against the organization’s environmental policy, objectives and targets. 2.8 environmental performance criterion environmental objective, target, or other intended level of environmental performance set by the management of the organization and used for the purpose of environmental performance evaluation 2.9 environmental performance evaluation EPE process to facilitate management decisions regarding an organization’s environmental performance by selecting indicators, collecting and analysing data, assessing information against environmental performance criteria, reporting and communicating, and periodically reviewing and improving this process 2.10 environmental performance indicator EPI specific expression that provides information about an organization’s environmental performance 2.10.1 management performance indicator MPI environmental performance indicator that provides information about the management efforts to influence an organization’s environmental performance 2.10.2 operational performance indicator OPI environmental performance indicator that provides information about the environmental performance of an organization’s operations 2.11 environmental policy statement by the organization of its intentions and principles in relation to its overall environmental performance which provides a framework for action and for the setting of its environmental objectives and targets [ISO 1 4001 :1 996]
2.12 environmental target detailed performance requirement, quantified where practicable, applicable to the organization or parts thereof, that arises from the environmental objectives and that needs to be set and met in order to achieve those objectives [ISO 1 4001 :1 996] 2.13 interested party individual or group concerned with or affected by the environmental performance of an organization [ISO 1 4001 :1 996] 2.14 organization company, corporation, firm, enterprise, authority or institution, or part or combination thereof, whether incorporated or not, public or private, that has its own functions and administration NOTE For organizations with more than one operating unit, a single operating unit may be defined as an organization. [ISO 1 4001 :1 996]