FRONTIERS OF ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION-ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS: A REGULATOR'S PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

Leading edge companies throughout the world have embraced management systems to achieve optimal sustainable performance in the ever changing business environment of the 1990s.

Given that the natural environment and environmental performance have become one of the major issues affecting organisations, the need for integrating environmental management with all the other components of an organisation's overall management approach is now widely recognised.

Systems interface best with systems. For environmental management to interface effectively with an organisation's other management systems, a systems approach to environmental management would seem the best. The release in November last year of the draft international standards (ISO 14000 series) on environmental management systems (EMS) has provided organisations with an internationally recognised means for this to occur and provided an additional benchmarking tool.

It follows that environmental regulatory systems are required to enable regulators to effectively interface with company EMSs. Regulatory theory suggests that outcomes-based approaches are preferable to prescriptive approaches. Those parts of EMS standards which detail the requirements for particular system elements could provide the nexus for the company, regulator and community in future co-regulatory frameworks.

These EMS standards refer to both regulators and the community as 'Interested Parties' being either 'concerned with or affected by the environmental performance of an organisation'.

The Interim EMS specifications standard, released in Australia and New Zealand as AS/NZS ISO 14001(Int):1995 refers to 'Interested Parties' in only two EMS elements, 'Objectives and Targets' and 'Communication'. It is here that there are potential benefits and opportunities for companies, regulators and the community to cooperate in the emerging climate of these new international standards.