ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (EMS) FOR PORK PRODUCTION
Beth Graves
Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance, N.C. DENR
1639 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1639
(800) 763-0136 or (919) 715-6506
What is an EMS?
An Environmental Management System (EMS) is a tool that provides organizations with a method to systematically manage their environmental activities, products, and services and helps an organization to achieve its environmental obligations and performance goals. An EMS follows a Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle or PDCA and is a model that can be used by a wide range of organizations from manufacturing facilities to service industries to agricultural operations. In September 1996, the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) published ISO 14001, the Environmental Management Systems standard, an international voluntary standard describing seventeen specific requirements for an EMS.
The basic components of an EMS include:
(1) a policy statement (including a commitment to compliance, prevention of pollution, and continuous improvement),
(2) an analysis of environmental impacts and legal requirements,
(3) a statement of goals/objectives/targets and initiatives,
(4) a corrective and preventive action plan, and
(5) a management review system.
The EMS does not establish additional environmental compliance requirements or any performance levels but provides instead the framework for a facility to meet the environmental goals and objectives that it sets for itself.
Benefits of an EMS
The potential benefits from implementing an EMS include cost savings from pollution prevention activities, greater environmental awareness, enhanced compliance, and an improved public image. In addition, the EMS helps ensure that the environment is integrated through the fabric of the organization and that the environment is the responsibility of all employees.
EMS Pork Producer Pilot Program
In 2001, the U.S. EPA Office of Water awarded the Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance (DPPEA) a grant to work with hog farms in North Carolina to implement an EMS and to develop EMS implementation tools based on results of the pilot effort. DPPEA, in conjunction with the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service, has assisted eight farms with EMS design using the ISO 14001 model. Currently, a web-based tool that will facilitate identification of farm activities that could impact the environment and prioritization of these impacts is being developed.
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