Environmental Management System

Our environmental management system (EMS) aims to fulfill internally the goals described in our Environmental Policy on compliance, pollution prevention, minimisation of consumption and other issues. The Director of the EPD is our green manager.

Green Management System in EPD

In 2002, our senior management endorsed proposals to improve our environmental management system (EMS). This followed a gap analysis of our EMS in 2001, which used ISO 14001 standards as the benchmark. The proposals covered three areas. First was a merger of the EMS with the existing Safety Management System. Second was the merger of the Green Management Committee and the Departmental Safety and Health Committee, into the new Departmental Environment, Safety and Health Committee (DESHC). The third proposal was to implement a programme for the systematic assessment and management of environmental aspects of our operations.

Meetings of the DESHC are attended by representatives from our six divisions, as well as staff representatives. The committee is supported by the Environment, Safety and Health Unit (ESHU) - formerly the Safety and Health Unit. The ESHU is responsible for developing, implementing and reviewing our environmental management system and practices department-wide. Green practices are carried out by individual groups under their respective divisions. Environmental, safety and health matters are discussed at the DESHC.

All of the EPD's offices are required to complete regular self-audits of their green management practices. In 2002 some 37 self-audits were completed by the groups who used checksheets prepared by the ESHU. The ESHU, in turn, audited 12 groups. The audits revealed that staff were in general very aware of green office housekeeping. They implemented such things as self-initiated paper and electricity saving practices, and they set their own performance targets. They also set up attractive green corners to post information on green measures and on their green housekeeping achievements.

To improve our EMS and make it more effective, we are establishing a system to identify, assess and record the environmental impacts of our internal operations and daily activities, and to manage these impacts.

ISO 14001 Certification

We obtained certification of our Waste Facilities Business Unit (WFBU) in 2000. We see certification as an opportunity to continue improving our environmental performance and to set a good example for other government departments and the private sector.

The WFBU also requires contractors of new waste management facilities to obtain ISO 14001 EMS certification as part of contractual arrangements.