What is ISO 14001 Certification and is it a Requirement?

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What is ISO 14001 Certification and is it a
requirement? ISO 14001 is an Environmental
Management System. It is an internationally
accredited standard that sets out requirements
for organizations to implement and maintain an
effective Environmental Management System. It
helps organizations to identify and manage their
environmental impacts. If your organization is
generating waste that is causing air pollution,
water, sewage, and soil contamination, and
climate changes, you are encouraged to get the
ISO 14001 certification. On a high level, it
works in a similar manner like other ISOs such as
ISO 9001 (Quality Management System) and ISO
45001 (Occupational and Safety Management
System), which implies that ISO 14001 can be
easily integrated into other management systems.
It is important to know that this certification
is not a requirement for organizations
irrespective of the sector and size. For an ISO
standard certification to be awarded, an
organization has to go through the accreditation
process with a third party auditing body. An
independent certification body will evaluate your
implemented system against the requirements set
forth by the ISO 14001 Standard.
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Organizations can also choose to implement the
environmental management system internally
without getting the certification done and reap
the benefits from using the standards. But there
could be huge monetary and environmental benefits
for some organizations which will be discussed in
the next section. How will it benefit your
organization? When your organization goes through
the ISO 14001 implementation and certification
process, where a third party comes for evaluation
of your operations and implementation of your
Environmental Management System, you show to your
customers, buyers, and other stakeholders that
your organization has gone through the rigorous
process of certification and your operations
comply with the regulations set by the
Standard. This can foster customers and
collaborators trust in your organization and
bring more traction to your organization. When
your organization follows a systematic approach
to achieve the ISO 14001 certification, you can
find various areas of improvement and
opportunities for cost reduction. Getting the
ISO 14001 certification boosts your
organizations reputation which brings financial
gains. Positive impact on the Environment As
organizations go through the certification
process, they realize the environmental impact of
their operations and waste generated. While
implementing the certification, they learn to
control the waste and look for options to improve
their operations that lead to minimal
environmental impact. Many organizations are
able to reduce their waste with minimal landfill
after they implement ISO 14001. Theres a lot of
emphasis on recycling and reuse of waste
generated. How can MG help you with ISO 14001
certification? MGs consultants are experts in
the field of waste management, and ISO
certifications. We have years of experience and
expertise in partnering with organizations to get
their ISO 14001 certification done.
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We will guide you throughout the certification
process, prepare your documentation, conduct gap
analysis of your existing system, and perform
internal audits. MGs ISO 14001 consultants will
also provide you post Audit support if there are
any major or minor non-conformities. MG
Consultants will emphasize the importance of
continuous improvement of the Environmental
Management System for an organization.