Using Continued Environmental Compliance as an Objective

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Marcia L

I remember seeing a thread related to this topic but can not find it. If anyone also remembers it please point me in the right direction.

I would like to set an objective to Continue Improving our Compliance with Environmental Regulations but I am struggling to come up with a measure. I'd like to avoid # of noncompliances as it would most likely always end up as zero and that doesn't exactly leave a method to show improvement. Any thoughts?
 

Colin

Quite Involved in Discussions
Could you phrase it around the timeliness of your response to changing legislation? e.g. you will have updated your legal register (if that is what you have) within x days of new legislation being issued and verified compliance with it.
 

somashekar

Leader
Admin
I remember seeing a thread related to this topic but can not find it. If anyone also remembers it please point me in the right direction.

I would like to set an objective to Continue Improving our Compliance with Environmental Regulations but I am struggling to come up with a measure. I'd like to avoid # of noncompliances as it would most likely always end up as zero and that doesn't exactly leave a method to show improvement. Any thoughts?
Is it this thread that you mention about ... ?
 
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Marcia L

Unfortunately its not the one I was thinking of. The one I had in mind had a response that cautioned the poster to against using the words "complying with all legal requirements", because it tends to suggest that the organization doesn't comply. The recommendation was to use the words "Continue to Comply with Regulations". If I'm not mistaken I think the thread went on to discuss measuring methods.
 

somashekar

Leader
Admin
Unfortunately its not the one I was thinking of. The one I had in mind had a response that cautioned the poster to against using the words "complying with all legal requirements", because it tends to suggest that the organization doesn't comply. The recommendation was to use the words "Continue to Comply with Regulations". If I'm not mistaken I think the thread went on to discuss measuring methods.
Did you have a chance to see the threads down this page in the Similar Discussion Threads ... ?
 

Randy

Super Moderator
I remember seeing a thread related to this topic but can not find it. If anyone also remembers it please point me in the right direction.

I would like to set an objective to Continue Improving our Compliance with Environmental Regulations but I am struggling to come up with a measure. I'd like to avoid # of noncompliances as it would most likely always end up as zero and that doesn't exactly leave a method to show improvement. Any thoughts?

Won't wash, and I wouldn't (and have never) buy it. Why, because you have made a committment in your policy to comply, have got to create procedures to assist in the compliance, have to evaluate the compliance, take corrective action to fix noncomplinace or take preventive action to keep noncompliance from occurring....By setting a number to avoid "I'd like to avoid # of noncompliances " you are in essence stating that some level of noncompliance is accceptable....THAT DOG DON'T HUNT! Compliance isn't absolutely required by 14001, but it is by your regulatory agency governing your activities. You don't improve compliance, you either do it or you don't.

You set objectives for stuff you don't have have to do, you set them for things you'd like to do to IMPROVE environmental performance...Read the definition of Objective is Section 3....it states among other things "that the organization sets itself to achieve" You don't set compliance requirements, you have no say in compliance requirements and you can't change compliance requirements.

Now 100 people are going to tell you 287.5 different things, so the advice I'll give is:

1) Read Section 3 of 14001 especially environmental objectives, targets, continual improvement, and environmental performance

Now more valid objectives could be something like "develope better procedures to help improve compliance efforts", or "obtain more precise instrumentation to aid in monitoring emission levels" or "build a new waste water treatment facility", or " improve upon compliance training and awareness of applicable personnel".....Those are good objectives (and ones I've seen). Each of them is specific, can be measured and can have time frames assigned to them.

But to say that your objective is to comply no less than X% of the time...Trust me, your regulator would love to see that in writing...I've also seen the results of that very same thing on and it was ugly and very, very costly
 
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Marcia L

Randy-Thanks for the advice. I agree, it makes little sense to set an objective for something we should have already achieved.

How about establishing an objective of "improving our overall environmental performance through EMS enhancements" with a measurement of the # of improvements completed or the # of aspects improved?
 

Randy

Super Moderator
Randy-Thanks for the advice. I agree, it makes little sense to set an objective for something we should have already achieved.

How about establishing an objective of "improving our overall environmental performance through EMS enhancements" with a measurement of the # of improvements completed or the # of aspects improved?

You'd have to be able to show a starting point and proposed ending point (Target) for either of them and be able to demonstrate what "environmental" improvement impact may be the result of your efforts, but yeah, you could do that.
 
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