ISO 14001 Standards – Nonconformance, Corrective and Preventive Action

ISO 14001 Standards - Nonconformance, Corrective and Preventive Action

ISO 14001:2004 Section 4.5.2, Nonconformance And Corrective Andrequires that organizations establish and maintain procedures that:

Preventive Action,

• Define responsibility and authority for handling and investigating nonconformance

• Take action to mitigate any impacts caused by nonconformance

• Initiate and complete the appropriate corrective and preventive action.

ISO 14001:2004 Section 4.5.2 also states that “…any corrective or preventive action taken to eliminate the causes of actual and potential nonconformances must be appropriate to the magnitude of problems and commensurate with the

environmental impact encountered.”

If any changes in the documented procedures result from any corrective and preventive action, you must implement and record these changes.

Nonconformance refers to any issues that do not meet or comply with the requirements established in the EMS or the ISO 14001 standard. Procedures developed under ISO Section 4.5.2 will provide the mechanism to handle

non-conformances and to ensure steps be taken to prevent a recurrence.

The procedures should include the following key steps:

1. Identify the problem

2. Determine the cause

3. Establish the solution

4. Document the solution

5. Implement the solution

6. Record the documentation and implementation of the solution

7. Communicate the solution.

ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Video

ISO 14001 Standards - Environmental Management System

SUMMARY OF CHANGES TO ISO 14001:2004

SUMMARY OF CHANGES TO ISO 14001:2004
ISO 14001:2004 aims to clarify the 1996 edition and align it more closely with the ISO 9001:2000 standard. Some clauses have not been modified for content but have been rewritten to align ISO 14001:2004 with the format, wording, and layout of ISO 9001:2000 and to enhance the compatibility between the two standards.
References in Annex A of the standard are aligned with the numbering in the standard for ease of use. Annex B of the standard identifies similarities and associations between ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001:2004.
An important change in wording throughout the revised standard appears in requirements that previously stated that an organisation shall “establish and maintain”; these have now been changed to “establish, implement and maintain”.
Throughout the standard the word “personnel” in the original standard is replaced with “persons working for or on behalf of the organisation” in the revised standard. This is included to ensure that external contractors and applicable suppliers are included under the requirements of certain clauses.
In developing, implementing and maintaining the organisation’s EMS, significant environmental aspects, applicable legal requirements and other requirements to which the organisation subscribes must be considered, and management must ensure the availability of resources.
There are additional paragraphs in the introduction, which generally cover:
• the aim of the ISO 14001:2004 standard is to enhance compatibility with ISO 9001:2000;
• alignment is improved between clause references and supporting Annexes. For example, 4.3.3 and A.3.3 both deal with objectives, targets and programme(s), and 4.5.5 and A.5.5 both deal with internal audit;
• an explanation of the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) model used in ISO 9001:2000;
• the use of the process approach is promoted in alignment with ISO 9001:2000;
• possible alignment and integration with other management systems is reviewed.