Environmental Management System Scope of Certification The provision of commercial and industrial cleaning services throughout Queensland.
Table of Contents Contents 1. Introduction... 3 1.1. The Environmental System Manual... 3 1.2. Description of the Company... 3 1.3. Definitions... 4 2.1. Environmental Aspects... 5 2.2. Legal & Other Requirements... 5 2.3. Objectives... 6 3.1. Resources & Roles... 7 3.2. Training... 8 3.3. Communication... 9 3.4. Documentation... 9 3.5. Document Control... 10 3.6. Operations Control... 10 3.7. Emergency... 10 4.1. Monitoring... 10 4.2. Nonconformity... 11 4.3. Control of Records... 11 4.4. Internal Audit... 11 2 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
1. Introduction 1.1. The Environmental System Manual This manual outlines our company's plan to satisfy the Environmental Management System (EMS) requirements of ISO 14001: 2004. It is applicable to environmental aspects that the company identifies as those which it can control and those which it can influence. It does not state specific environmental performance criteria. The manual is a "controlled" document within our Environmental Management System however "uncontrolled" copies can be distributed to any interested party. The manual is intended to be used as a public document that displays this company's commitment to achieving environmental compliance to ISO 14001: 2004 in all our activities. 1.2. Description of the Company APS has a back to nature philosophy when it comes to cleaning. Our philosophy is based on the appreciation that a clean planet is a healthy planet. We empower our employees by using the best green products currently available in the market. All of our products are designed to have the least pollution impact on the earth. APS Cleaning s motto is to be accountable. This means putting our cleaning staff through a rigorous training and educational curriculum. It means coaching, encouraging personal development, and caring deeply about our work and our people. APS is one of the few Brisbane cleaning companies that offer Truly-Green cleaning services at 100% of its sites. As a Truly-Green commercial cleaning service provider, every APS location has a commitment to deliver the highest cleaning quality services, while adhering to our strict green cleaning standards. Our goal is to provide an ecologically friendly cleaning service; that is, to avoid: Petroleum-based products Products containing carcinogens or substances that damage our health Products that may be hazardous to our clients, our staff and the environment In our quest to do no harm as we clean your workplace, we will use the greenest products currently available. APS Cleaning has an entire green cleaning program to help you maintain a healthy building. APS green cleaning practices contribute to a more comfortable work environment for you, your employees and your clients. We are also committed to acting with honesty and integrity in all aspects of our business, to being professional in doing our job, and to delivering a consistent, high level quality of services. To be a dynamic, innovative and respected service provider that is committed to its core values, and where excellence is the standard. We are a valued extension of our clients decision-making processes. We are dedicated to employee growth and organisational vitality. APS Cleaning is dedicated to implementing and encouraging the use of sustainable materials, processes and solutions in every face of our business, and to minimise harm to the environment Fred Meuspaque 01/06/2015 3 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
Revision and Version Status VERSION NO. SECTION NO. REVISION NO. DATE ISSUED CHANGES MADE 1 Entire manual 7/11/2013 First draft for review and approval 1 Entire manual 0 21/1/2014 First Issue 1 Organisation Chart 1 Scope Statement, Management Representative 1 21/1/2014 Change to Organisation Chart resulting from NCR04 2 10/2/2014 Addition of Scope Statement. Additional of Section 4.1.1 Management Representative resulting from NCRs 9 & 10 2 Entire manual 0 24/4/2014 Implementation of Integrated Management System 2 Entire Manual 1 01/06/2015 Annual Review This manual is issued by Management Representative with the approval of the Director/s and is reviewed in accordance with the Document Control procedure. 1.3. Definitions Auditor Person with the competence to audit. Environmental Aspect Element of the company s activities, products or services that can impact on the environment. Environmental Impact Any change to the environment, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partially resulting from the company s environmental aspects. Environmental Performance Measurable results of the company's environmental management of its environmental aspects. Environmental Policy The company's statement of its overall intentions and direction related to its environmental performance as formally expressed by management. 4 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
Environmental Objective Overall environmental goal, consistent with the environmental policy the company sets. Interested Party Individual or group concerned with or affected by the environmental performance of the company. Prevention of Pollution Use of processes, practices, techniques, materials, products, services or energy to avoid, reduce or control pollution, in order to reduce adverse environmental impacts.environmental Planning 2. Environmental Planning 2.1. Environmental Aspects Register of Environmental Aspects The Organisation will establish a Register of Environmental Aspects to identify the environmental aspects within the scope of The Organisation' EMS. This involves consideration of normal and abnormal operating conditions, start-up and shut-down conditions, as well as foreseeable emergency situations. The Organisation classifies its activities into the following categories: Emissions to air Effluent releases to water Land contamination Use of raw materials and natural resources Use of energy Energy emitted, e.g. heat, radiation, sound Waste generated Carbon foot-print The Organisation plans to minimise the possible impacts caused by the above-listed aspects by tackling the problem at its source, namely: Design & development Manufacturing/business processes Monitoring the environmental performances of our suppliers and contractors Transportation Waste management and treatment Refer Register of Environmental Aspects 2.2. Legal & Other Requirements 5 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
The Organisation will establish a Register of Environmental Legislation to keep track of the latest legislations and regulations relevant to our EMS procedures in accordance to the guidelines set out in ISO 14001: 2004. Environmental Legislation Summary The Summary of Environmental Legislation will consist of a list of regulations which affect our business directly and other regulations which will impact our business financially. The Management Representative will identify and communicate the most current national, regional, state and local legal requirements as applicable to The Organisation throughout the organisation. Refer to Procedures: Environmental Aspects Environmental Legislation Legal Compliance Requirements Regulatory Approvals Refer to Forms: Register of Environmental Aspects Environmental Legislation Summary 2.3. Objectives The Organisation takes the following factors into account in order to establish, implement and maintain documented objectives and targets: Our Environmental Policy Legislative and other requirements Significant environmental aspects Financial, operational and business requirements Input from major stakeholders The Organisation ensures that Operating Procedures are implemented to keep control of our compliance with Environmental legislations and regulations. Once implemented, we will convert our objectives and targets into a programme or action plan. Implementation of the programme consists of: Assigning a person to be in charge of each specific area identified Identifying all those who will be involved in the process The sequence of steps and actions that will lead to the desired result An implementation schedule Refer Procedure: Objectives & Targets 3. Implementation 6 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
3.1. Resources & Roles The Organisation' management structure is shown on the chart below. The duties and responsibilities of individual positions which have an input to environmental performance are described in the following paragraphs. Directors/Management Team As the senior executive officers, our Directors have the overall responsibility for setting the company's environmental objectives and targets. These are met through the allocation of resources as required. The Directors review the environmental management system regularly. In line with its commitment, both share responsibility for the following tasks: 1. setting environmental objectives and targets, and authorising the Environmental Policy; 2. chairing the management reviews meetings to verify how the company continues to meet environmental objectives and environmental plans and the availability of resources to meet such objectives and plans; 3. conducting regular formal communication sessions explaining how the company's EMS meets the requirements of ISO 14001: 2004 Management Representative The member of the management team who is allocated the role of Management Representative has the responsibility and authority to manage the day-to-day operation of the environmental system, including advising senior management on the performance of the system. The Management Representative is also responsible for monitoring performance, identifying training requirements and conducting training in environmental awareness. In short, the Management Representative s responsibilities are: To set up the EMS in accordance with the requirements of ISO 14001. To keep the EMS up to date. Managers & Supervisors Managers and Supervisors are responsible for all The Organisation operational activities within their area of operation. They are accountable for the environmental outcomes of their individual areas. Operations Manager The Operations Manager is responsible for the planning and implementation of the Organisation s operational activities with emphasis on the control of the environmental aspects, especially significant aspects. He/she sets work instructions in place, updating them in consonance with technology advances and commits to continual improvements in operational efficiencies and effectiveness. Emergency prevention, response and state of preparedness are among the major responsibilities. All Staff 7 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
Each person is individually responsible for ensuring that they understand their role in achieving environmental outcomes and then putting these principles into practice. Resource Management Developing and implementing a sustainable environmental system requires resources. The company shall determine and provide the resources needed in order to implement, maintain and continuously improve the environmental system to achieve customer requirements. The focus should be on: a) ensuring that personnel performing work affecting environmental are competent; b) company infrastructure (buildings, workplace, facilities, equipment and machinery, communication facilities, etc) is adequate; and c) the work environment is capable of supporting the environmental journey. The Organisation will ensure that we can always meet our environmental objectives and deliver a product or service that meets our customer's needs. We will ensure that the following activities are performed at least on an annual frequency basis. Personnel performing work affecting environmental will be competent by: identifying the necessary competence; conducting competency assessment to identify any deficiencies providing necessary training/education or other actions (such is the recruit of suitable qualified personnel, including subcontracting) to overcome these deficiencies; and ensuring that records of such training and education are adequately maintained and preserved. Including suitable and measurable environmental objectives to personnel for job tasks performed and measuring performance against objectives at least during formal annual reviews to ensure that personnel is aware of the importance of their activities. To achieve a sustainable work environment, we will: develop conditions of work to ensure best performance; and monitor such conditions to ensure their continuous suitability The Organisation Chart is shown in the Management System Manual 3.2. Training The Organisation will ensure that everyone in an "environmental impact" role is aware of the environmental policy and each has the responsibility of achieving conformance with the policy and procedures in order to comply with the requirements of the EMS. Staff are selected for their role after careful consideration has been given to their previous work history, both within and outside The Organisation, their relevant academic study and any taskrelated training already completed. The training must meet the following principal objectives: the importance of conforming to the policy and procedures of the EMS; knowing the significant environmental aspects of their job; 8 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
roles and responsibilities in relation to the EMS; the potential consequences of departing from the Operating Procedures; the consequences of not doing their job properly; Where a need for training is identified, this will be arranged to an agreed priority and a record of this training will be kept. Our Management Representative is responsible for identifying training needs in consultation with the CEO and Business Owners and will arrange and monitor all training programs. Refer Procedure: Training 3.3. Communication The Organisation has established and will maintain a procedure for internal communications regarding environmental aspects and the EMS and receiving, documenting and responding to relevant communication from external interested parties. A separate procedure has been established to determine and document how we will communicate externally about our significant environmental aspects. Refer Procedure Environmental Communication 3.4. Documentation The Organisation EMS is documented in a five-tiered structure: Environmental Policy a statement of The Organisation commitment to be a responsible corporate entity in protecting the environment. This is issued by our Directors and is reviewed regularly. Environmental Manual outlines what we will do to meet the requirements of each element of ISO 14001: 2004 and environmental objectives, targets and programs. In fulfilling these requirements we expect to satisfy the objectives of our Environmental Policy. The Environmental Manual is issued by the Management Representative with the approval of the Directors and will be reviewed regularly. Procedures describes in detail how we will satisfy each element of I ISO 14001: 2004 and how we control other critical processes in order to meet the commitments outlined in the Environmental Policy. Environmental Procedures are issued by the Management Representative and are reviewed as required due to changing circumstances. Work Instructions details the necessary steps for each environmental -related or critical-related activity in logical sequence so that the activities can be consistently repeated to the standard required in the procedures. Work Instructions are issued by the Management Representative and are reviewed as required to reflect changing circumstances Environmental Plans these plans are specific to individual projects and outline the particular actions and considerations that may be needed for that project to meet the company's environmental objectives. Environmental Plans are issued by the Manager of the project in consultation with the Management representative and are only relevant for the duration of the project. 9 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
Documentation & Document control - Records provide evidence of conformity to requirements. Certain records are "controlled" and as such a procedure defining who controls where and for how long records are stored and the method of disposition has been issued by the Management Representative. Refer Procedure Documentation 3.5. Document Control The Organisation controls system documents in a consistent manner across all of its management systems. Refer Non Conformity in the Management System Manual Refer Procedure: Document Control 3.6. Operations Control The Organisation has identified routine activities that have the potential to cause adverse environmental impacts. The Organisation has identified, developed and implemented, where appropriate, procedures to ensure that the operations are carried out under specified conditions and those potential adverse environmental impacts are minimised. 3.7. Emergency The Organisation operational activities are normally conducted at external sites operated by third parties and in those situations emergency response forms part of specific customer arrangements. In situations where The Organisation is required to manage emergency response it will be managed in accordance with the following procedure. The procedure addresses reasonably foreseeable environmental emergency situations that could arise through The Organisation activities. However, potential emergencies and responses are specifically related to site conditions and therefore generic response procedures need to be adapted to each situation. Responsibility for identification of potential emergencies, adaptation of generic response procedures and implementation of response procedures are detailed in the following procedure: Refer Emergency Response 4. Checking 4.1. Monitoring The Organisation acknowledges that monitoring of the key characteristics of our operations and activities is required to measure conformance with the EMS. Monitoring is also a key component of the continual improvement process. Overall improvement in environmental performance is measured by reviewing the progress of implementation of the objectives, targets and associated actions, compliance with operational control procedures (including work instructions) as well as the effective implementation of environmental management procedures. 10 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
Compliance with legislative and other requirements will be monitored periodically by the Management Representative through audits and inspections. Potential noncompliance will be reported and managed through the Non-Conformance Control, Corrective and Preventative Action Procedure and Management Review Refer Procedure Monitoring & Measuring 4.2. Nonconformity The Organisation employs a standard process across all management systems to take corrective and preventative action when required. Refer Non Conformity in the Management System Manual Refer Procedure Corrective & Preventative Action 4.3. Control of Records The Organisation employs a standard process across all management systems for the control of records Refer Control of records in the Management System Manual Refer Procedure Control of Records 4.4. Internal Audit The Organisation employs a standard process across all management systems for all IMS Internal Auditing Refer Internal Audit in the Management System Manual Refer Procedure Internal Audit 5. Management Review The Organisation will conduct a regular review of its management systems. The EMS Review includes the following key elements: Results of internal audits and evaluations of compliance with legal requirements and with other requirements The Organisation subscribes to; Review of the Environmental Policy, Environmental Management Manual and Operating Procedures to ensure they are still consistent with and relevant to, the overall policies and objectives of the organisation. Review of the Register of Environmental Aspects and Environmental Legislation Summary to ensure that they are current and relevant to new developments Status of preventative and corrective actions Actions outstanding from previous meetings Setting improvement action plans Refer Internal Audit in the Management System Manual 11 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1
Refer Procedure: Management Review 12 Page All Hardcopy Documents Are Uncontrolled Version 2.1