Identifying Environmental Aspects and Environmental Impacts

ISO 14001 requires :

• A procedure to identify the environmental aspects of its activities, products or services that it can control and over which it can be expected to have an influence in order to determine those which have or can have a significant impact upon the environment - 4.3.1
• The consideration of significant environmental impacts, financial, technological and business issues when setting environmental objectives and targets - 4.3.3.

Environmental Aspect 
Element of an organisation's activities, products or services which can interact with the environment.
Note : A significant environmental aspects is an environmental aspect which has or can have significant environmental impact.


Examples

• Spills and leaks of material;
• Disposal of waste;
• Use of energy, water and other natural resources;
• Emissions to air;
• Discharges to land or water;
• Noise generation; and
• Odour.

Environmental Impact
Any change to the environment, whether averse or beneficial, wholly or partly resulting from an organisation's activities, products or services.


Examples

• Increase in level of airborne particulates;
• Ground contamination;
• Change to water table - level or quality;
• Loss or gain of natural habitat;
• Contamination of marine environment;
• Enhanced greenhouse effect; and
• Depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer.

The identification of the environmental aspects is an ongoing process that determines the past, present and potential impacts of an organisation's activities on the environment. The purpose of identifying of the environmental aspects of an organisation is to ensure that these activities, products and services are assessed and incorporated into the performance standards of the environmental management system.

The scoping of environmental aspects and impacts is often too narrow ie, no consideration of :

• the extent of control and influence that the organisation has over its environmental issues;
• start up and shut down periods;
• contractors and suppliers;
• emergency situations; or
• historical activities.