ABSTRACT
Chapter 2, “A Systematic Approach to Managing Environmental Risk,” presents an overview of the benefits of a formal environmental management system in helping businesses to engage proactively with their environmental management rather than simply reacting to regulatory requirements. Numerous standards and guidelines provide a framework for top management and the entire organization to assess, manage, and reduce environmental risks, thus elevating environmental management into areas of strategic decision making at the highest levels of an organization. ISO 14001 outlines an organizational framework for the systematic identification, control, and improvement of all environmental aspects and impacts. Once an initial analysis of these aspects and impacts has been conducted, an organization then must develop its environmental policy statement. Within the basic ISO 14001 organization activities are some 38 different environmental management functions, which are explored in this chapter.
