ISO 14000 Standards and Environmental Performance Index: A ...

comparative data on the indexes is expected to provide trends towards effective
environmental management.
ISO 14000 and Environmental Performance Index for the Indian Steel Industry
ISO 14000 provides a model for establishing a management system that is focused on
controlling and improving a company's impacts on the environment. Effectively applied,
ISO 14001 promises cost savings, waste reduction, energy efficiency, resource
productivity, and improvements in public relations and liability. It shares common
management system principles with ISO - 9000 series of quality system standards i.e.
policy, planning, implementation and operation, monitoring and corrective action and
management review.
The family of environmental standards ISO 14000 was developed by the ISO Technical
Committee ISO/TC207 and published in September 1996. Formally adopted in 1996 by
the International Organization of Standardization, ISO 14000 represents a new voluntary
international environmental standard, which will likely be adopted by the vast majority of
corporations in India. Its major focus is on the structure, implementation, and
maintenance of a formal environmental management system. In this article, we use case
studies of steel plants in India and discuss some variables that may be used to attain ISO
14000 certification. It is a case in point that the various steel plants in India have already
undertaken voluntary measures that go beyond the scope of compliance. This is their
journey towards certification of ISO 14000.
When ISO 14000 was introduced, following the Rio Summit, India being a signatory of
GATT (General Agreement on Tariff and Trade) was compelled by exogenous factors to
implement ISO 14000 stipulations in its economic gamut. Many companies viewed the
new international standard as a natural extension of the quality management system. Just
as total quality management (TQM) demands a goal of zero defects, as they are clear
indicators of inefficiency in the design of processes and products and services, similarly
the new approach, total quality environmental management, considers every
environmental impact as an indicator of inefficiency in the use of materials and energy. It
aims to improve efficiency and quality by eliminating emissions, effluents and accident.
This new concept of sustainable development has been applied in this paper to develop a
comprehensive approach of the issues related to production of steel with particular
reference to steel plants in India; the objective is to develop an Environmental
Performance Index that will inculcate a spirit of resources utilization in an environment
friendly manner and providing environmental protection.
The Environmental Performance Index suggested in this paper is developed on the
philosophy of the ISO 14000 series goes beyond mere compliance with environmental
legislation. It encourages a systematic examination of all areas where an organization’ s
activities have an impact on the environment and can yield bottom-line benefits such as
reduced waste and savings in consumption of energy and materials.