ENVIRONMENTAL

L AUDITING
Environmental Auditing
X Environmental Audit an
nd its Objectives
X Principle functions of an
a environmental audit
X Environmental Auditing
g
X Areas of environmentall auditing
g
X Types of audits
X Audit protocols and too
ols
X Conducting an environm
mental audit
X Contents of audit Report
X Structure of Audit Repo
ort
X The benefits of auditing
 Environmental Audit and its Objectives

“Environmental audit meaans a systematic evaluation of

audit”
activities and processes of a project to determine how far
these activities and pr processes conform with the
approved environmental management plan of that
specific project and sound d environmental management
practices and applicable envvironmental standards;
Environmental Audit and
a its Objectives
Environmental auditing is
i an attempt to provide
information on the enviro
onmental performance of a
company, and d thus
th includ
i l d
de environmental
i t l issues
i i
in
the decision making proce
ess.
An environmental
A i t l audit
dit assesses the
th nature
t and
d
extent of harm to the environment
e caused by the
activities wastes or noise
activities, n from a particular
company.
Environmental audits must be independent,
independent
objective, credible and transparent
t in order to be
successful. Audits should also be regularg and
ongoing.
 Objectives

On going Beyond
Dr. K V Reddy
compliance
5
 Principle functions of an environmental audit
(a) improve an organization or activity’s
compliance with environmental
e legislation and
regulations
l ti such
h as air
i emission
i i standards,
t d d effluent
ffl t
standards, waste ma anagement standards, and
standard operating proccedures;

(b) document an operation or activity’s current

environmental perform mance of operation and
environmental management procedures, including
emergency response planning, monitoring and
reporting system and a planning for future
environmental performa
ance;
Principle functions of an environmental audit
c) prevent damage andd the tendency for
environmental damage
(d) improve resource use through reduction in
material use,
use to min
nimize wastes and to
identify recycling opportun
nities; and
(e) actions undertaken or needing to be
undertaken by an organnisation or activity to
meet environmental goals such as sustainable
development, recycling an
nd efficient use of
resources.
 Environmental Au
uditing
Two forms of auditing have be
een defined:
1- External Audit
2- Internal Audit
an assessment of the conditions of the local environment,
and consisting of 'Policy Im mpact Assessment', a review of
the activities (objectives, se
ervices, practices and policies) of
the authority related to the e environment protection as well
as 'Management Audit', a review of the procedures by
which environmental policie es are managed by the authority.
METHODOLOGY
S.
Period Subject
No
• Questtionnaire survey
• Pre-audit visit to assess the facilities
1. Pre-audit Period availa
able to team
• Identif
Id tiffy
f the
th key
k persons and d organize
i att the
th
time of
o audit
• Collecction and collation of information
(review
w of records)
Activities at Site
2. • Materiial balance
• Waterr balance
• Monitooring and verification
3 Post
3. P t Audit
A dit • Draft
D ft reportt
• Final report
Areas of environm
mental auditing
Areas of environmental auditing
a normally include:
X Management
g Systems
y
X Material management, savings and alternatives;
X Energy management an
nd savings;
X Water management and economy of use;
X W t generation,
Waste ti man
nagementt and
d di
disposal;
l
X Noise reduction, evalua
ation and control (internal
and
d external);
t l)
X Work Zone Environmen
nt Quality
X Health Monitoring
Areas of environme
ental auditing
g
¾ Air emissions and indoo
or air quality;
¾ Transportation and tra
avelling practices;
¾ Staff awareness, particcipation and training in
environmental issues;
¾ Environmental informa
ation publicity;
¾ Public enquiry and com
mplaints response; and
.
 Types of audit
1- Compliance audit:
The most common type e of audit. it consists of
checks against enviro onmental legislation and
company policy.
li C mpliance
Com li audits
dit may beb
multimedia or program mmatic. Multimedia audits
involve identifying and auditing all environmental
media (air, water, wastte, etc.) that apply to the
operation/company.
p p y Prog grammatic audits ((which mayy
also be called thematic or
o media-specific) are limited
in scope to specific areass, such as air.
Types of audits
issues audit: an evaluation of how a company's activities
relate to a specific environmental isssue such as global
pollution or energy use;

site
i audit:
di an audit
di off a particular
i l site
i to examine
i actuall or
potential environmental problems;

due diligence audit: an asssessment of potential

environmental and financial risks and
a liabilities carried out
because of a company merger or site acquisition or
divestiture (e.g. contaminated land remediation
r costs);
Types
yp of audits:

Product or life cycle

y e audit

an analysis of environ
nmental impacts of a
product throughout all
a stages of its design,
production, use and disposal,
d including its reuse
and recycling.
recycling
 Audit p
protocols and
a tools
• The term "protocol" meeans the checklist used by
environmental auditorss as the g
guide for
conducting the audit activities.
a
• Current technology
gy sup
p
pports manyy versions of
pp
computer-based protoccols that attempt to simplify
the audit process by co
onverting regulatory
requirements into quesstions with "yes", "no" and
"not applicable" check boxes.
• Other auditors use permits directly as protocols.
Audit protocols, methods
m and
tools
l
During
g the p past 20 yyears,, advances in
technology have had major impacts on auditing.
Laptop compute ers, portable printers,
CD/DVDs the internet,
CD/DVDs, internet email and wireless
ireless
internet access have all been used to improve
audits,, increase auditor access to regulatory
g y
information and create audit
a reports on-site.
 Conducting an environm
mental audit
(a) Describe the project;
((b)) indicate the objective,
j , sco
ope
p and criteria of the
audit;
((c)) studyy all relevant envvironmental law and
regulatory frameworks on health
h and safety,
sustainable use of natural resources and on
acceptable national and d international
standards;
(d) verify the level of compliance by the
Proponent or the develop
per with the
conditions of the envvironmental management
plan;
Conducting an env
vironmental audit
(e) evaluate the proponentt’s or the developer’s
knowledge and awarene ess of and responsibility for the
application of relevant le
egislation;
(f) review existing proje ect documentation related
to all infrastructural fa
acilities and design;
(g) examine monitoring pro ograms, parameters, and
procedures in place for control and corrective actions
in case of emergencies;
(h) examine records of inciddents and accidents and the
likelihood of future occurrrence of the incidents and
accidents;
Conducting an enviro
onmental audit
(i) inspect all building gs, premises and yards
in which manufacturing g, testing and
transportation takes placce within and without
the project area, as well asa areas where goods are
stored
t d and d disposed
di d off and
a d give
i a recordd off all
ll
significant environmental risks associated with such
activities;
(j)examine and seek views on health and safety issues
from the project emplo
oyees the local and other
oyees,
potentially affected commmunities; and
Conducting
g an env
vironmental
audit
( k) prepare a list of healtth and environmental
concerns of past and ono going activities.
THE CHECK LIST FOR EAC
CH PLANT SHOULD BE
PREPARED BASED ON ABOOVE STEPS AFTER A
WALK THROUGH THE PLA ANT AND AFTER
UNDERSTANDING THE PRO OCESSES AND
ACTIVITIES>
 Contents of environme
ental audit report
p
(a) a presentation of the type of activity being audited;
(b) an indication of the va arious materials, including
non- manufactured materials, th he final products, and by-
products,, and waste g
p generated;;
(c) a description of the different technical activities,
processes and operations of the project;
(d) a description of the nationa
al environmental legislative
and regulatory frameworks on n ecological and socio-
economic matters relevant to that particular project or
activity;
 Contents of environme
ental audit report

(e) a description of th
he potentially affected
environment on ecollogical and socio
socio-economic
economic
matters;
(f) a prioritization of all pa
ast and ongoing concerns of
the project;
(g)an identification of all environmental and
occupational heath an
nd safety concerns of the
p j
project;
(h) an opinion on the effiicacy and adequacy of the
g ent p
environmental managem plan of the p
project;
j
Contents of environmental audit report

(i) detailed recommendatio ons for corrective

activities,, their cost,, tim
metable and mechanism
for implementation;
(j) an indication of the mea
asures taken under the
environmental manageme ent plan to ensure
implementation is of accceptable environmental
standards; and
(k) a non technical sum mmary outlining the
key findings, conclusion
ns and recommendations
of the auditor.
 Structure of the Aud
dit Report
(a)) executive
ti summary;
(b) project’s current status infformation;
( ) audit
(c) di objectives
bj i and
d scope
e;
(d) audit protocol, criteria and
d methodology used;
( ) fi
(e) findings
di and
d observations;
b i
f) description of key issuess including the discovered
project strengths and weaknesses;
(g) recommended actions;
(h) conclusions;
(i) list of documents used or cited
c as references; and
(j) appendices (photographs,
(photographs future Plan of Action
Action,
consultancy and the liist of stakeholders consulted.
The benefits of au
uditing
Ensuring compliance, noot only with laws,
regulations
g and standard
ds,, but also with
company policies and thee requirements of an
Environmental Management System (EMS)
standard
d d iff adopted
d d

Enabling environmental problems and risks to

be anticipated and respoonses planned;
To demonstrate that an oorganization is aware
of its impact upon the en
nvironment through
providing feedback;
The benefits of auditing
g

Increased awareness amo

ongst stakeholders; and

More efficient resource use and financial

savings.
i

Improved environmenta
al practices and

environment friendlyy te
echnology
gy often save
money in the long run
Than
nks
nks