Environmental Auditing

What is Environmental audit ?

EA is a management procedure designed
to provide information on
environmental performance to the right
people at the right time.
By Tolley.
Or,
It is a systematic means of providing
environment management
information :
1. To all management levels
2. For a no of diversified purposes

Conti .
Refer to a no of different but coordinated
information and assessment activities as,
1. A technical review : this audit includes the
systematic information collection regarding
existing and potential impact of the organizations
activities on the environment.
2. A management review : this audit
emphasizes primarily on management procedures
and record keeping and also gather information
on compliance with legislation.
3. Due diligence review : this audit examines the
possible expenditure to implement pollution
control and site remediation measures.

The eco-management and audit

objectives

Acc. To European Commission foll. Def and

steps are involved in environmental audit :

An environmental audit means a management tool

comprising a systematic, documented, periodic and
objective evaluation of the performance of the
organization , management system and processes
designed to protect the environment with the objective
of :
1. Facilitating management control at practices which
may have an impact on the environment
2. Assessing compliance with company environmental
policies

Foll. Steps must be included in

Audit
1. Planning of audit activities
2. Review of the environmental protection policy
of the company
3. Assessment of the organization ,
management and equipment.
4. Gathering of data and all relevant information
5. Evaluation of overall performance
6. Identification of areas for improvement
7. Internal reporting to top management

Developing an audit
programme
Foll

decisions are to be taken :

1.The scope of audit : what information
needs to be collected
Compliance with environmental regulations
Companys environmental policies and
procedures implementation
Sustainable environmental management
practice.
Past activities

Frequency of auditing
An

audit should be conducted at one to

three years interval . The frequency of
audit shall depend on foll. aspects
The urgency and importance of the
problems detected
The potential for environmental problems
Volume of emissions
Intensity of the hazards
Complexity of the activities
history of environmental problems

Who shall carry out the audit

Should

be carried out by a qualified

environmental auditor
Auditor should know all related
aspects of environmental science
Should be well experienced
Representatives of academic field ,
govt. , NGOs should also be invited
in auditing process.

Decision on public disclosure of

the information

EA are conducted to understand the impact of any

operation adopted by a company on environment and
to assist in future decision making , it is not always
necessary to disclose publicly the result of the audit.
Experts have suggested voluntary disclosure of the
audits to the public by the companies through an
environmental audit statement specific to each site
audited. Should include
Description of the company s activities at the sites
A detailed assessment of all relevant environmental
issues

Conti ..
Summarized

data table on waste

generation , pollutant emissions, raw
materials, energy utilization and
other env. Impacts.
An account of companys
environmental policy programme and
site specific objectives.
An evaluation of performance of the
environment management system.

Auditing Process

1.
2.
3.

Audit process can be divided into:

pre-audit activities
Activities at site
Post-audit activities

1. Pre-audit activities

Selected and scheduled facility to audit based on selection

criteria and priorities assigned.
Select audit team members with simultaneous confirmation
of their availability , travel and lodging arrangements ,
assigning audit responsibilities.
Contact facility and plan audit
Discuss audit programme
Obtain background information
Administer questionnaire
Determine requirements
Identify priority topics
Determine resource needs
Identify staff to be interviewed

2.Activity at site
Identify and understand management control
systems through the review of background
information , opening meeting, orientation,
review of audit plan, understanding of
internal controls
Assess management control systemsthrough identification of strengths and
weakness of internal controls, adoption of
audit plan and allocation of resources
Gather audit evidence conducting
interviews, collection of data, maintaining
document, review of all findings and
observations.

Conti .
Evaluate audit findings- develop a list
of findings, assemble papers and
documents, integrate and summarize
findings, prepare report for closing
meeting.
Apply a verbal report of findings to
facility- that includes presentation of
initial findings at closing meeting and
discussion of findings with plant
personnel.

3. Post-audit activities
Includes:
Issuing

a final report highlighting

the needed action plan within a
specified deadline.
Action plan , preparation and
implementation depending on audit
findings in final report.
To follow up an action plan.

Benefits of environmental
audit
Serves as a framework to estimate and manage
environmental performance
Managers become clear and transparent about their
environmental responsibilities
Develops awareness of environmental management
throughout the organization
Gives information for future planning.
Gives the sense of security to the managers that the
company is following its environmental
responsibilities.
Reduces the chance of environmental accidents
because weaknesses are exposed through periodic
audit.