This news article was originally written in Spanish. It has been automatically translated for your convenience. Reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate translation, however, no automated translation is perfect nor is it intended to replace a human translator. The original article in Spanish can be viewed at ¿Un SGMA mejora realmente el rendimiento medioambiental?

The project Remas begins study to measure the benefits of the EMS in industrial plants

An EMS can really improve the environmental performance?

Drafting QU01/06/2004

This and other questions relating to the implementation of environmental management systems (SGMAs) and its real benefits will try to respond the project of the European Commission called Remas, which is co-financed by the Life Environment Programme and hosted by the Environment Agency English and Welsh. To this end, during the next three years will be they collected and analysed data from industrial plants from all over Europe and published the conclusions. At the moment are searched facilities willing to collaborate in the project.

In particular, the draft Remas will examine whether the Community system of management and environmental audit scheme (EMAS) and other established SGMAs are directed towards improving the environmental performance and progress with regard to regulatory compliance.

While, in theory, implement an EMS should optimize the environmental performance of a company, there is little data to support it.

You remas will measure the benefits of the SGMAs for companies as well as regulators, analyzing data through a wide range of industrial activities. Another of its objectives is to demonstrate what voluntary compliance measures that measure better the environment and why.

Also, it will be investigated if the industrial plants that have already implemented a system of environmental management (EMS) have benefited in its environmental performance and they will be identified gaps in the SGMAs are already under way.

The industrial sectors that have been selected for this study are very diverse, and among them is that of organic, inorganic chemistry, plastics, combustion and generation of energy, refineries, pulp and paper, incinerating, glass and agricultural chemical and pharmaceutical industries.

You remas began its journey on 1 November 2002, and during the next three years they will be collected and will be analysed data from industrial plants from all over Europe. To be completely effective, Remas finds data in industrial plants that have or not a formal or informal EMS. In addition, it will use this information to demonstrate ways to avoid duplication of work, resulting from the overlap between the regulatory process and the implementation of an EMS.

The findings of the project will be sent to key European Union regulators and legislators in pro improve practice in environmental management.

You are invited to collaborate

In this first phase of the project, the team Remas is in the process of contact with industrial plants which are invited to collaborate in which no doubt will be the study of greater magnitude that has been never in Europe on the evaluation of environmental management systems. It is intended to identify the most significant elements of EMS implementation, thereby helping companies to invest more effectively.

Benefits

The main benefits to be gained by participating in this project include the following:

• Delivery of a report free and confidential to carrying out an evaluation on the performance of your company/EMS with respect to other companies in its sector (always respecting the confidentiality of data of all participants).

• Opportunity to participate in best practices and improve their performance.

• Influence directly to give way to the future regulatory and environmental management policy throughout Europe.

• Improve the image of the system of environmental management (EMS) between key members with interests in the company.

You remas is financied by the environmental programme Life (body of the European Union) and the project partners. Life environment is an organ of the European Union which supports environmental demonstration projects. The English and Welsh Environment Agency are leading this project, working in conjunction with the Scottish Environmental Agency (SEPA), the environmental agency of Ireland (EPA) and the Institute of assessment and environmental management (IEMA).

What to do to register?

To join Remas only have to register the plant that represent Web page (www.remas.info), either you can send the information of regis-

TRO team Remas mnavarro@remas.info, then must fill out a questionnaire that can send through the channels listed above.

With regard to confidentiality, any information provided by the industrial plant and is not in the public domain will remain in complete confidentiality from the team you Remas and it will be used exclusively for the development of this project.

With regard to the questionnaire, the proof requested in the questionnaire after each section of EGM (assessment of environmental management) is not required of imperative form to all companies. Only they will ask some documents in random cases as a guarantee that the data that have filled in the questionnaire are reliable.