All About ISO

As part of developing and implementing an ISO 14001 environmental management system (EMS), a facility will set objectives and targets.  This process can be difficult without a clear understanding of the difference between an objective and a target as defined in the standard. The standard defines these terms as follows:

•  environmental objective -  as an overall environmental goal, consistent with the environmental policy, that an organization sets itself to achieve. 
•  environmental target  - a detailed performance requirement, applicable to the organization or parts thereof, that arises from the environmental objectives and that needs to be set and met in order to achieve those objectives.

• Reduce energy consumption - decrease electricity usage by 10% annually
• Implement a recycling program - recycle a 1,000 pounds of office paper annually
• Achieve zero discharge of industrial wastewater - complete a facility-wide water usage and wastewater evaluation.