Regulatory agencies, facing increasingly limited financial and human resources, are recognizing that the promotion of EMS concepts is a way to further their goals of environmental protection. There are numerous state and federal programs that support the implementation of EMSs in the regulated community.
EPA's Office of Water has recently signed an agreement with the American Public Works Association (APWA), who will also work in partnership with the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), to help educate public works directors and city/county managers on EMSs. Under this agreement, APWA, EPA, and ICMA will sponsor EMS discussions at APWA and ICMA national meetings, help support a number of state and Regional workshops around the country with APWA and ICMA member chapters, and host a national webcast with national EMS experts. For more information about this initiative contact Megan Zadecky at APWA (mzadecky@apwa.net), Jim Horne at EPA (horne.james@epa.gov), or Andy Seth at ICMA (aseth@icma.org).
APWA Announces New Initiative to Promote Efficient Environmental Management
APWA is pleased to announce the award of a cooperative agreement from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Wastewater Management. Through this agreement, APWA will work in partnership with EPA and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) to develop and conduct an education and outreach campaign on EnvironmentalManagement Systems (EMS) (APWA Reporter December 2004). For more information, please contact Megan Zadecky, APWA Communications Manager - EMS Project, at (202) 408-9541.
APWA June 2006 EMS Brochure
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (U.S. EPA) support for the voluntary adoption of EMSs has been evident since the mid-1990s.The Office of Water (OW) has been the leader in promoting EMS adoption with public agencies. OW, working with the Global Environment and Technology Foundation (GETF), has sponsored over 30 public agencies as they have adopted EMSs since 1997. More recently, OW designated seven organizations around the country as EMS Local Resource Centers (i.e., PEER Centers) to meet the EMS needs of public agencies around the country through training, education, and other forms of technical assistance. Finally, a national clearinghouse of EMS information geared to the needs of public agencies has been established. Information on all of these efforts can be found at www.peercenter.net.
Federal support for EMSs is also demonstrated through U.S. EPA’s Performance Track Program. Performance Track encourages and recognizes top environmental performance by private and public facilities across the United States. Performance Track facilities exceed compliance with regulatory requirements and achieve environmental improvement and excellence by utilizing an EMS as a fundamental mechanism. To encourage environmental achievement and continuous environmental improvement, U.S. EPA offers incentives to Performance Track members, including:
Recognition – Recognition of member accomplishments by the U.S. EPA Administrator and other top officials through national and regional press releases, meetings and other vehicles.
Networking – Promoting exchange of information and creating a “learning network” for members.
Lower Priority for Routine Inspections – Establishing Performance Track members as a lower inspection priority since a performance- and compliance-focused EMS, coupled with periodic auditing, should prevent non-compliance at Performance Track facilities.
Regulatory and Administrative Incentives – Regulatory and administrative actions that only apply to participating Performance Track facilities (e.g., flexible permits that will reduce permitting costs and uncertainty).
As of November 2003, there were more than 300 members in Performance Track from around the United States, including numerous municipalities and 15 federal facilities participating in the program. For more information about Performance Track, go to http://www.epa.gov/performancetrack.
A number of associations that interact with public organizations and PEER Center Sectors support EMSs, including the American Water Works Association (AWWA), the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS), the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), the National Association of Counties (NACO), the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA), the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and the American Public Works Association (APWA), among others. Many of these organizations have funded specific EMS initiatives and research. For more information on the association above and their support of EMS, visit their Website.
From the United States Environmental Protection Agency Position Statement on Environmental Management Systems (EMSs), signed on May 15, 2002 by EPA Administrator Whitman:
"EPA will foster continual learning by supporting research and public dialogue on EMSs that help improve our understanding of circumstances where EMSs can advance the Nation's environmental policy goals. We will strive to collect better information on the application of EMSs, including how well EMSs meet environmental performance expectations; and the costs and benefits to organizations and the environment."
