What is ISO 14004:2016?
ISO 14004 provides guidance on the establishment, implementation, maintenance and improvement of an environmental management system and its coordination with other management systems like ISO 9001, ISO 45001, etc.
It is not a set of requirements, it is a guidance document. An organization cannot become ISO 14004 certified. It is one of the ISO 14000 family of documents relating to the implementation of an Environmental Management System (EMS).
- Read about the entire ISO 14000 Family of Standards
The guidelines in ISO 14004:2016 are applicable to any organization, regardless of its size, type, location or level of maturity. While ISO 14001 guidelines are consistent with the ISO 14004:2016 environmental management system model, they do not provide interpretations of the requirements of ISO 14004:2016.
ISO 14004 provides general guidelines on environmental management systems – detailing how to establish, implement and maintain an environmental management system (EMS), and how to coordinate it with other management systems. ISO considers an effective environmental management system to be a tool that enables an organization to:
- Identify and control the environmental impact of its activities, products or services;
- Improve its environmental performance; and
- Implement a systematic way to set and achieve environmental objectives.
Here is a summary of the contents:
- 1. Scope
- 2. Normative references
- 3. Terms and Definitions
- 4. Context of the Organization
- 5. Leadership
- 6. Planning
- 7. Support
- 8. Operation
- 9. Performance Evaluation
- 10. Improvement
- Annex A: Examples of international environmental guiding principles
- Annex B: Bibliography