The term” life cycle” is not new to most, but the use of the term “Life Cycle Perspective” (LCP) in ISO (2015) is one of the bigger changes in the most recent revision. Organizations transitioning to the revision must think carefully about how to use a life cycle perspective when planning the transition to the 2015 revision. 2015 requires the use of a life cycle perspective when it states: 6.1.2 Environmental aspects Within the defined scope of the environmental management system, the organization shall determine the environmental aspects of its activities, products and services that it can control and those that it can influence, and their associated environmental impacts, considering a life cycle perspective. The previous version of 14001 (2004) only mentioned the term life cycle once in the Annex: The identification of environmental aspects does not require a detailed life-cycle assessment. Information already developed for regulatory or other purposes may be used in this process In 2015, the term life cycle appears 18 times, 7 of which are associated with the concept of perspective. 2015 does not explicitly define LCP stopping short and providing only a definition of term “life cycle”: 3.3.3 life cycle consecutive and interlinked stages of a product (or service) system, from raw material acquisition or generation from natural resources to final disposal Note 1 to entry: The life cycle stages include acquisition of raw materials, design, production, transportation/delivery, use, end-of-life treatment and final disposal.
SOURCE: ISO, 3.1, modified? The words “(or service)” have been added to the definition and Note 1 to entry has been added. So the major questions are:. How should organizations use a life cycle perspective when planning its EMS?. What sort of evidence will auditors expect to see to confirm a life cycle perspective was used in planning an EMS?
May 12, 2017 - ISO 14001 Management. Remove links to legal register (aspects. C) To enable screening of the environmental aspects. The purpose of this Register of Environmental Aspects & Impacts is as follows.
Using a life cycle perspective when planning an EMS. The introduction of 2015 provides some insight into what the standard means by Life Cycle Perspective when it states: A systematic approach to environmental management can provide top management with information to build success over the long term and create options for contributing to sustainable development by controlling or influencing the way the organization’s products and services are designed, manufactured, distributed, consumed and disposed by using a life cycle perspective that can prevent environmental impacts from being unintentionally shifted elsewhere within the life cycle.
This statement suggests the purpose of using a life cycle perspective is to prevent the unintentional transfer of environmental impacts. In order to do this, organizations need to expand their view of the impacts derived from their product and services beyond the property fence line. Organizations need to look up their supply chain to understand the environmental impacts caused by their suppliers and those supplying their suppliers.
In doing so, the organization may be able to identify environmental impacts of which they had been previously unaware. Armed with this new information the organization can then consider what, if any, control or influence they have over these supply chain environmental impacts. Similarly, organizations will need to look down supply chains to identify environmental impacts that derive from the use of their products or services by their customers and end users. Also, they need to evaluate their ability to control or influence these impacts. Once these up chain and down chain impacts have been identified, 2015 expects that organizations endeavor to address the environmental aspects that are causing these impacts where practical.