9Economics of Agriculture SI - 1 UDK: 334.716:502.2
POLICIES AND STRATEGIES ENVIRONMENTAL LEVEL OF NATIONAL ENTERPRISES
Alexandru NEGREA1, Ioana Maria GHIDIU BITA2 Abstract
More and more enterprises (company) have become aware of the fact that they have to take into consideration dealing with the impacts of their activities on the environment. This is why the creation of an efficient and functional system for environmental management becomes a priority. Such a system would serve to minimize the impact upon the environment. In this paper I tried to identify steps to implement the environmental management system and In this paper I tried to identify steps to implement the environmental management system and I followed their application to one of the largest enterprises in our country - Chemical combines Azomures.
Key Words: environmental strategies, competitiveness, environmental management, quality standards
INTRODUCTION
The most important benefit of this system for environmental management is that it obliges the enterprise to approach systematically this ecological problem. The motivations for implementing this system are of strategic, economic, managerial and judicial sort.
The correct functioning of the system assures a better performance through the positive impact that it could have on several aspects:
- cut costs
- risk management
- enhance credibility
- increase competitiveness
1 Alexandru NEGREA, PhD, University Ovidius, Constanta, 900527 Constanta; Bdul Mamaia nr.124
2 Ioana Maria GHIDIU BITA, Phd. Student, Academia de Studii Economice din Bucure§ti E-mail i_ghidiu@yahoo.com
- business relations
- personnel motivation
We used as a method of research in this paper analyze quantitative and qualitative aspects of the environment and a comparative analysis of the law on environmental protection in EU and in our country.
THE SCOPES STANDARD ISO 14001
The 14001 ISO standard has the general official aim of maintenance of environmental protection, pollution prevention corroborated with socio-economic needs.
The specific aim of this standard is to offer organizations all the necessary elements for the creation of an efficient system, which can be integrated into the global management of the enterprise and which is able to permit the achievement of the ecologic and economic established objectives.
The standard establishes the requirements of the system, which would allow enterprises to formulate the politics and objectives of environment considering the legislative frame and the ecological aspects of their activities. This standard can be applied by any organization, regardless of type, size and of activities undertaken, not just industrial ones.
Environmental management, as any management, gets beyond the law bound and implements its spirit, the principles of environmental protection. These principles are orientated at the prevention of impacts on the environment or keeping them in legal limits.
Environmental management relies on the convergence of law requirements and the applicable settlements, as well as the requirements adopted by the organizations.
The implementation of a system for environmental management helps the organization to adapt better to European Community requirements.
Steps to implement the environmental management system
For the implementation of a system for environmental management in an organization, there have to be followed five stages:
1. The settlement of the environmental politics;
2. The planning of ecologic activities;
3. Implementation and operation;
4. Verification and revision;
5. Analyze conducted by the management.
Stage 1: The settlement of the environmental politics.
The environmental politics is defined by the organization's executives as a declaration, which has to underline the fact that the principles and intentions of the enterprise regarding the ecologic performance are identified, documented, implemented and communicated.
The environmental politics has two major functions:
- inside the organization: to determine the direction of development in the area environment protection;
- outside the organization: to bring out to the stakeholders the concern of the enterprise about environmental protection.
Case Study: Chemical combines Azomures
The environmental politics at the Chemical combines Azomures aims for harmonization of economic results with the ones in the area of environmental protection and orientation to the elimination of the sources of pollution. The adopted environmental politics pursues:
• the continuous evaluation and keeping under control of all environmental matters and consequences of "past pollution" and the improvement of ecologic performance;
• the optimization of specific consumptions of raw materials, utility materials and the minimization of the loss;
• the compliance with legislative applicable requirements referring to environmental protection, in accordance with European Union Directives;
• the communication of ecologic performance to the stakeholders;
• the involvement of employees for the carrying out of measures contained in Environmental Management Programs and Improvement of Ecologic Performance indexes.
For the objective achievement contained in the Investment Program financial resources and human capital have to be allocated. The objectives refer in main to:
1. The compliance with European environmental legislation requirements through:
• creation of new fittings of membranous;
• enlargement of cremation capacity for organic dreg chlorinated through the construction of a new incinerator.
2. Quality improvement of residual waters by respecting the limits enforced by law through:
• the erection of local stations for worn-out waters treatment at the propenoxid fitting;
• the modernization of biological station treatment for the integration effluents in foresee NTPA001 2002 in what regarding suspensions, the chemical consumption the biochemical and the oxygen;
3. Dealing with residues by obeying the law in this area and the capitalization residues, through:
• the construction of an incinerator for solid residues;
• the construction of an incinerator for liquid residues in the frame of the anhydride ftalica fitting;
• the closure of the whether of organic dreg.
The improvement of the Quality-environment integrated system operation, as well as the continuous improvement and prevention of pollution represents for Azomures
Stage 2: The planning of ecologic activities.
The planning is one of the most important stages in the process of construction and implementation of a system for environmental management. Therefore the following have to be known:
• Aspects of environment;
• Legal provisions and other requirements;
• General and specific objectives;
• Environmental management Programs. Stage 3: Implementation and operation
For an effective implementation of the system of environmental management it is recommended that the organization develops the funds and the mechanisms of necessary supports for the achievement of the environmental politics, objectives and its aims in this area. For the implementation of a system of environmental management it is necessary to define:
- the structure and the responsibility;
- the instruction, the awareness and the competence;
- the communication;
- the documentation for the system of environmental management;
- the control of documents;
- the operational control;
- the preparation for urgency situations and the capacity of answering.
Stage 4: Verification and revision
This is the key stage of a system of environmental management, which supervenes after the planning of the environment politics and its implementation. The aim is to ensure that the organization controls and, in case it is necessary, also revises the key elements of the system. It is recommended that the organization monitories and evaluates its ecologic performance. The measurement, monitoring and evaluation are the key-activities of a system of environmental management. In the absence of neither these activities it would be impossible to settle nor the unconformities neither the corrective activities and/or preventive necessary activities. Also, the audit of the system of environmental management would be deprived of basic elements in settling conclusions. This stage involves:
- monitoring and measuring;
- unconformity, revision and prevention;
- registration;
- audit of the system of environmental management. Stage 5: Analysis conducted by the management.
The organization has to perform continuous analysis and improvement of the system of environmental management, having as objective the improvement of global performance. This last stage is decisive for the assurance of a continuous improvement process, for the achievement of the settled ecologic performance. These analyses can
be made together with the analyses of the management quality system conducted by the management.
The implementation of such a system in compliance with ISO 14001 requires the involvement of all the organization's personnel, regardless of the hierarchical level or the position, and especially the creation of a dynamic process of continuous improvement and of environmental impact self evaluation.
Therefore, the implementation of such a system has internal benefits:
• Conformation to legislation;
• Systematic approach by the management; Efficaciousness - the identification of opportunities to reduce the consumptions of materials and energy, to reduce the amount of residues, to enhance the process' efficiency
• but also external benefits:
• Safety and acknowledgement from third parties;
• Transactions facilitation for which performance of the ecologic factors is a key element;
• Reduction of associate costs for audit;
• The ability of offering/ bid the contracts (protection or growth of shares on the market);
• Benefits from the increased efficiency of the use of funds;
• The enhanced ability of adaptation to change;
• Public image and favorable relations with the community etc.
THE EUROPEAN ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT AND AUDIT (EMAS)
In June 1993, the Union's Council adopted decision no. 1836/93, which permits voluntary participation of enterprises from the industrial sector in a system of environmental management and audit. This decision, has become effective April 1993 under the name EMAS. This approach based on voluntarism, is propped up on the expectations of many market actors and consumers. Once an enterprise decides to participate to EMAS, it has to obey all provisions contained in the decision.
This assures a plausible and strict approach of environmental management. Among EMAS objectives there is the ecologic performance improvement, compliance with legislation in this area publication of the measures undertaken in the area of environmental protection.
For the registration EMAS, an organization is due to respect the following conditions:
• to make at least an environmental analysis for its activities, products and services, and on the bases of these results, to implement an integrated system of environmental management, which responds to all requirements and especially respect the legislation from the environmental area. For organizations that already have a certified system of environmental management in accordance with the requirements recognized till date, do not need to make an environmental analyses at the moment they
implement EMAS, on condition the system contains the necessary information about identification and evaluation of the environment;
• to accomplish or to solicit the making of at least one environmental audit in accordance with the enforced requirements. This audit evaluates the organization's environmental performance;
• to prepare a report of environment in accordance to the elements required. In April 2005, Germany had 2147 EMAS certified firms followed by Austria
with only 251, Switzerland 184, Denmark 160, Spain 82, Great Britain 78, Norway 63, France 54, Finland 35, Italy 31, Holland 27, Belgium 9, Ireland 8, Greece 2, Luxemburg 2 and Portugal with just one firm.
CONCLUSIONS
There are many means of implementing a system of environmental management which can be applied depending on size, activity domain and danger represented against environment. These vary from internal, unique methods or granting prices to eco-aware enterprises, to the introduction of systems of management which are oriented to excellence in the area of environmental protection. These methods are not set aside for big or international companies; they can be applied also by medium sized companies, public institutions, services suppliers, even by workshops. EMAS, ISO 14001 or the environmental performance indexes, ISO 14031, are permissive methods for integrating environmental protection into the day-to-day life of an enterprise.
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