Grantee Research Project Results
Final Report: Environmental Management Systems: Informing Organizational Decisions
EPA Grant Number: R829407Title: Environmental Management Systems: Informing Organizational Decisions
Investigators: Lave, Lester , Hendrickson, Chris
Institution: Carnegie Mellon University
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: November 1, 2001 through October 31, 2003
Project Amount: $323,265
RFA: Decision-Making and Valuation for Environmental Policy (2001) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Environmental Justice
Objective:
The overall objective of this research project was to investigate environmental management systems (EMSs) to obtain a better understanding of their contributions to environmental improvement and organizational decisionmaking. The result will include an improved design for EMSs as an environmental information collection and evaluation system for organizations and regulators. The specific objectives of this research project were to: (1) examine and report on the existing EMSs, the data collected through their use, and how these data are evaluated and communicated within an organization; and (2) develop an EMS model to improve the decisionmaking capabilities of the organization. This EMS model was designed to link environmental information with other organizational information to provide management with more comprehensive data.
Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):
The investigative research involved both macro- and micro-levels of analysis. In the micro-level analysis, nine U.S. multinationals participated in surveys and indepth interviews to determine the existing use of EMS and environmental information within the organizations. The facilities for the indepth investigation included firms from electronics, transportation, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. Although the firms have broad national focus, facilities located near the researchers were targeted for visits to reduce travel costs. Typically, a site visit involved interviewing one to two employees regarding the EMS, information included within the EMS, and the use of this information. Tours of the facilities were included to provide the researchers with an appreciation of the operations and environmental impacts present in the facility. The information from the site visits was synthesized and analyzed in a variety of ways. Information on the EMS structure and operation was examined separately from environmental information available via management systems. The data were examined for trends and unique comments across facilities. At the completion of the site visits, a summary report was provided to all participating firms. The report included the overall results of the site visits and a benchmark comparison of each firm to the group.
The macro-level analysis examined facility performance in relation to its commitment to EMSs. Initially, this track of research included a broad, multisector longitudinal study using data from the Census of Manufactures via the Carnegie Mellon Census Research Data Center (CM-CRDC). Entrance to the CM-CRDC was unsuccessful, however, after a 12-month process. The proposal for entry to the CM-CRDC stagnated in the review process of the Census Bureau and the Internal Revenue Service as proposal requirements continued to change during the submittal time period and access to the CM-CRDC continued to be delayed beyond a reasonable time to complete the work. This eliminated the opportunity to examine facility-level data on production and energy use across several industry sectors. Instead, a single sector analysis on automobile assembly facilities was undertaken.
The analysis included a comparison of the environmental performance of the 50 automobile assembly facilities in the United States with regard to certification of an environmental management system to the ISO 14001 standard. The analysis considers four measures of environmental performance: toxic chemical releases, criteria air pollutants, hazardous materials generation, and compliance records. The analysis examined the performance of the facilities both before and after certification was achieved to determine if facilities with certified systems performed better than those without certified systems and to determine if facilities with certified systems improved their performance after the system had been certified.
Two workshops cosponsored by the Green Design Institute and the Carnegie-Bosch Institute at Carnegie Mellon University were held in conjunction with the research. The first was held in April 2002 and was entitled, “Environmental Management for Multinational Corporations.” Attended by top executives with environmental responsibility from Fortune 500 companies, the workshop provided a discussion forum for the pressing environmental management concerns of multinational corporations. Academic researchers and corporate representatives presented recent work and achievements regarding environmental management on a global scale. Challenges for the future include creating a seamless system across nations, which incorporates cultural differences and maintaining pace with the changing technology and product development aspects of the corporations. The second workshop, held in April 2003, focused on issues specific to the Southwest Pennsylvania Region. The regional focus was chosen based on comments from the case studies that local environmental managers often work without much support at their facilities. Managers and facility personnel with environmental responsibilities from regional companies met to discuss their role in dealing with local issues in relation to the pressing environmental management concerns of the multinational corporations where they operate.
Technical Aspects
Results from the indepth facility analysis and the workshop discussions indicated that, despite variations in industry and product lines, organizations have very similar environmental management systems and strategies overall. A “consensus” EMS has developed across industries, aligning with the ISO 14000 standard. Common components include environmental policies, goals, data collection systems, audits, and reviews. Overall, EMSs continue to focus mainly on regulatory issues, potentially hindering the significance of the voluntary programs to achieve improved performance beyond compliance.
Despite the commonalities across EMSs, unique elements do exist that assist in organizational decisionmaking. Unique elements of EMS, those not required by standard EMS frameworks, seem to be the most valuable for firms to evaluate and improve environmental performance. Such elements include detailed process maps to identify environmental issues, collaboration among environmental professionals, and tools to assess the risk of potential future issues. These elements are not required by standard EMS frameworks. These elements do, however, aid information exchange among personnel dealing with environmental issues. Communication was considered one of the greatest benefits of a formalized EMS according to the participants in the study. Process maps, collaborative events, and risk assessment tools were three items that aided communication of the EHS function within environmental, health, and safety (EHS) departments. Companies believed improvements could be seen, however, with additional communication of the EMS results outside the EHS function of the company. This includes communication internal to the company and to outside stakeholders. Two other elements deemed necessary for decisionmakers to fully recognize the value of EMSs are goals linked to strategy and reliable information systems. The lack of these elements keeps the EHS function separated from the central decisionmaking management of the company.
The results regarding environmental management information systems supported the results about EMSs in general. Most information included within EMS is data required for regulatory purposes and was collected by EHS departments prior to the establishment of a formal EMS (see Table 1). Most companies have information systems to collect injury and illness statistics, air emissions, and nonconformance data. Data that are nonregulatory-based include solid waste and recycling information for company-directed programs, energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and performance metrics. These results indicate that a model EMS, while focusing on regulatory issues, should extend beyond these concerns, and embrace information regarding potential future problems (e.g., water usage, energy sources, carbon emissions).
Table 1. EHS Data Available in Company Information Systems
Data Category |
Company |
||||||||
A |
B |
C |
D |
E |
F |
G |
H |
J |
|
Injury and Illness Incident Statistics |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|
Air Emissions Management |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
||
Key Performance Indicators |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
||
Nonconformance Statistics |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
||
Chemical Inventory/Management |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||
EHS Auditing |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||
Notice of Violation Tracking |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||
Waste Management |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||
Computer-Based Training for Environmental |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
||||
MSDSs—Incoming From Vendors |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
||||
Spill Tracking and Notification |
X |
X |
X |
X |
X |
||||
Computer-Based Training for Health and Safety |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
EHS Documents/Knowledge Base |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
Energy Consumption/Energy Management |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
ISO 14001 Management System |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
MSDSs—On the Web for Customers |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
Pollution Prevention |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
Toxic Release Inventory |
X |
X |
X |
X |
|||||
MSDS Creation—Outbound for Customers |
X |
X |
X |
||||||
Other |
X |
X |
X |
||||||
Regulatory Tracking Calendar |
X |
X |
X |
||||||
Wastewater Management |
X |
X |
X |
||||||
EHS Project Management |
X |
X |
|||||||
Product Liability/Product Stewardship |
X |
X |
|||||||
Regulatory Interpretation Library |
X |
X |
|||||||
Stormwater Management |
X |
X |
|||||||
Toxicology Information |
X |
X |
|||||||
EHS Cost Analysis |
X |
||||||||
Voluntary Program Participant Requirements |
Note: The listing represents categories of data only, and not individual information systems. More than one data category may be included in a single database, and elements within a single data category may be included in multiple databases.
Although comprehensive environmental management information systems are available at most companies, the information often is not shared outside the environmental departments. Most data are accessed only by the EHS personnel at the facility or within the business unit or division. Rarely is information requested by management outside the EHS department whether at the facility or division level. Most information is shared outside the company only with regulatory agencies. At the same time, information from EMS often is not linked to other operating data of facilities, such as accounting or operating data. Overall, environmental information lacks the integration into mainstream management systems and decisionmaking necessary for long-term environmental performance improvement.
At the macro-level, the analysis of environmental performance at automobile assembly facilities indicates that across all measures, virtually no difference exists in the performance of facilities with certified systems compared to those without certified systems. In addition, performance of facilities after certification does not indicate “continuous improvement.” Only publicly available data was used in the analysis so that a consistent comparison of performance could be achieved. Overall, U.S. automobile assembly facilities exhibit no substantial difference in environmental performance in relation to the implementation and operation of an EMS-certified to ISO 14001. The total emissions and wastes from all facilities decreased over the 1993-2001 period, which is to be expected. Emissions and wastes for individual facilities trend downward, although fluctuations both up and down are widespread. Regulatory compliance has not changed considerably over the time period, for better or worse. Continuing noncompliance events have decreased, but more significant noncompliance events are occurring. Certified facilities have more enforcement actions and pay high fines. These results indicate that perhaps efforts focused on operating the ISO 14001 EMS are replacing those focused on regulatory requirements. Also, once a facility had certified an EMS to the ISO 14001 standard, improvements in environmental performance did not accelerate from past performance. In some cases, facility performance was actually worse after an EMS was implemented and certified to the ISO 14001 standard.
The overall results of the two analyses led to the proposal of a model EMS. The proposed EMS should embody characteristics of a successful management system in general: supporting decisionmakers in evaluating and selecting projects that reduce liability or risk. The EMS should change operations for better performance (reducing wastes), extend beyond mere housekeeping efforts, and be cost effective in the long term. Five elements, identified from the case studies, establish the beginning of a model EMS: (1) process diagrams identifying material and energy inputs and outputs; (2) quantifiable goals for short- and long-term performance consistent with an organization’s strategic plan; (3) reliable methods of collecting and disseminating environmental data; (4) risk assessment tools for current and emerging environmental issues for operations and products; and (5) collaboration and education of environmental personnel within the organization and outside of the organization.
These five elements provide decisionmakers with relevant information linked to business strategy so that the organization can improve performance. The elements can be integrated with an existing EMS or used as a foundation for implementing an EMS.
The quality assurance requirements were met in several ways. Personnel interviews were conducted by the same individual to ensure consistency. The survey mechanism was pretested and reviewed. Results of each case study visit were compiled for review and verification by facility personnel to ensure completeness and accuracy. Once case studies were completed, responses were coded and analyzed for commonality. Data analysis at the industry sector level involved the use of publicly available environmental performance and production information. Where possible, secondary sources were consulted to confirm data accuracy.
Implications of Results
The results of the two analyses have important implications for policymakers, organizational managers, and the public. The consensus EMS that has been developed and implemented across corporations and facilities reflects a focus on regulatory issues and certification. The universal components in most systems indicate that similar results will be achieved. As components focus on existing regulatory issues, the usefulness of EMSs in assisting corporations to exceed compliance is debatable. Because very little of the information related to the EMS or environmental issues is communicated outside of the EHS area of a corporation, the ability of decisionmakers to identify areas where large strides in performance improvement might be achieved is limited. These implications are mirrored in the results of the automobile assembly facility analysis, where little difference is seen in environmental performance across facilities in the industry.
Furthermore, certification of an EMS to the ISO 14001 standard cannot be used as a proxy for improved environmental performance and, possibly more importantly, cannot be used as a proxy for regulatory compliance. One must consider, however, if how a facility is dealing with environmental issues is more important than the actual performance. The ISO 14001 EMS structure emphasizes continuity and consistency in addressing environmental impacts. If the management aspects of the standard have benefits outside of general environmental performance over time that serve to improve operations, then some benefit is achieved internally. Benefits such as codifying responsibilities, establishing protocols, increasing awareness of environmental issues, and documenting these items, albeit cumbersome, may be shown to improve the management of environmental issues overall. But policymakers concerned with the general well being of the public and the public’s exposure to potential environmental hazards is not concerned with how a facility is handling its environmental performance but with the outcomes of the performance. Although some improvements may be achieved, other independent reporting measures must continue to be used to assess overall performance rather than the mere existence of an EMS (with or without certification).
These results are sure to be contentious. Proponents of ISO 14001 fully believe in the benefits of the standard and its outcomes. But not everyone regards EMSs, particularly the ISO 14001 EMS standard, as practical and functional. The systems can be expensive to implement and maintain, may not provide value to justify their expense, are often bureaucratic rather than workable, and frequently are inefficient. These factors, along with the results of the research, should motivate further investigation into the use of EMSs by organizations and policymakers for improving environmental performance.
Journal Articles on this Report : 2 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
Other project views: | All 5 publications | 3 publications in selected types | All 2 journal articles |
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Type | Citation | ||
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Christini G, Fetsko M, Hendrickson C. Environmental management systems and ISO 14001 certification for construction firms. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management-ASCE 2004;130(3):330-336. |
R829407 (Final) |
Exit Exit |
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Matthews DH, Christini GC, Hendrickson CT. Five elements for organizational decision-making with an environmental management system. Environmental Science & Technology 2004;38(7):1927-1932. |
R829407 (Final) |
Exit Exit Exit |
Supplemental Keywords:
environmental management system, EMS, environmental health and safety, EHS, voluntary environmental initiatives, pollution prevention, public policy, decisionmaking, economics, environmental history, urban planning, regional planning, ISO 14000, ISO 14000 certified EMS, cost benefit, cost-benefit analyses, environmental policy, environmental values, measuring benefits, measuring environmental performance, economic, social, and behavioral science research program, economics and decisionmaking, regional planning,, RFA, Economic, Social, & Behavioral Science Research Program, Scientific Discipline, decision-making, Urban and Regional Planning, Economics & Decision Making, environmental management systems (EMS), ISO 14000, ISO 14000 certified EMS, decision making, measuring benefits, measuring environmental performance, environmental values, environmental policy, cost/benefit analysisProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.