Module 4 Question Bank with Answers

1. Give the process flow diagram for management of an environmental audit programme.

2. Give the contents of Environmental statement Form V.

3. Write a short note on waste minimization planning in an industry.
1. Identify the Waste Your Facility Creates
The first step is to identify your waste. Run a waste audit to figure out what waste your facility
generates, what volumes of those wastes it produces and what departments produce the most waste.
Identifying waste with the help of a waste audit is essential because it allows your organization to
manage its waste more strategically. If you know much of your waste is regulated medical waste,
you can contract with professionals who can dispose of it responsibly. If you know the bulk of
your waste is wastewater that requires treatment before disposal, you can seek out a disposal
company that treats wastewater at a dedicated facility.
An audit like this is also beneficial for determining where excessive waste occurs in your business.
If you know most of your waste disposal practices are relatively sustainable but one department
produces disproportionate amounts, you can tailor your strategies toward helping that department
reduce and recycle more.
2. Identify Waste Streams
Industries would want to know how much hazardous waste and non-hazardous waste they are
producing, as well as how much liquid and solid waste. This information is required to develop
targeted disposal practices for each type of waste and ensure regulatory compliance. To dispose of
certain waste streams, you may need specialized professional services. They can mitigate the risks
associated with these wastes and ensure safe, responsible practices around them.
3. Establish a Waste Management Team
Select responsible employees, to take charge of your waste management program.
One of the main benefits of creating a waste management team is the accountability it generates.
If no one is explicitly responsible for dealing with waste, this essential process may fall through
the cracks. A dedicated team will put strict deadlines and protocols in place to ensure
comprehensive, dependable management.
4. Assess Current Waste Disposal Methods
Taking a tour of the facility and observing the performance in areas like these:
Placement of refuse and recycling bins
Labeling of refuse and recycling bins
Reliability of the services that pick up your facility’s waste
5. Consider Your Waste Hierarchy
Consider implementing a hierarchy that prioritizes sustainable processes like reusing and recycling
over landfill disposal:
Reduce: Start by examining where your facility can reduce its waste generation. Brainstorming
ways to scale the sourcing back and minimize the amount of waste you produce.
Reuse: Considering what types of waste the facility can repurpose.
Recycle: Considering what waste can be diverted from the disposal stream and can be broken
down for recycling.
Recover: Waste products can be recovered for resale.
Dispose: Generally, everything that remains after you’ve exhausted the options above must go to
a landfill. With effective waste management practices, you can often minimize the amount of waste
that falls into this category and develop strategies for responsible disposal.

6. Select Waste Management Partners

One of the most critical points of waste management plan involves choosing the right waste
management partners for the business. One needs an external facility that has experience handling
the types of waste the particular facility produces and can help the facility work towards
their sustainability goals.
7. Set Targets for Waste Reduction
Before implementing the new waste management plans, measuring and quantifying the existing
waste management practices is important. After this targets must be set for the facility to achieve.
8. Create a Waste Management Action Plan
Action plan should contain specific, detailed procedures for separating the facility’s various types
of waste, getting waste to its proper containers and arranging disposal pickups. It should also
include the protocols one will follow to ensure compliance and address the procurement of
adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect the employees from contaminated waste.
9. Train Employees on New Procedures
Even the best-crafted waste management action plan won’t provide results if the employees don’t
understand or feel engaged with the new procedures. Facilities must make a company-wide
announcement of the new policies and then set up training sessions for their workers to increase
their familiarity, confidence and investment.
10. Track Your Progress and Monitor for Adjustments
Over time, tracking the organization’s progress towards its goals, and altering your processes as
necessary to enable consistent achievements is very important.

4. Explain in brief about major and minor nonconformities that affect the efficiency of
environmental management standards in an industry.

Major and minor nonconformities can differ depending on what sector your organization operates
in. Any type of nonconformity may have a greater environmental impact at a nuclear power station
than at a car parts retail facility; nonetheless, if you are handed a nonconformity you may fail your
14001:2015 audit, so it is vitally important that you understand the difference. With that in mind,
let’s look at some examples of each to help you relate this to your own business and understand
how both major and minor nonconformities may manifest in your company. Minor
nonconformities (a minor deficiency that does not seriously affect the efficiency of the EMS):

 Let’s say your organization has a process and procedures, but it is discovered during the audit
that one person is not using this correctly or at all. This may be raised as a minor
nonconformity.
 Your organization keeps maintenance records to prove machinery is maintained. This is
generally done, but one or two instances have been missed.
 A procedure exists, but is not found to be accurate and needs an amendment to ensure the
process can be followed accurately.

Major nonconformities (a major deficiency that seriously impairs the effectiveness of the EMS):

 The organization has failed to comply with or implement a clause of ISO 14001:2015.
 There is no evidence, or evidence is not substantial enough, of corrective action.
 Procedures are missing.

Minor and major nonconformities can be treated slightly differently, as some minor instances can
almost be fixed on the spot. However, a good practice is to use your established corrective action
procedure to ensure your nonconformities are treated in the correct way in terms of root cause
analysis, monitoring, and prevention of reoccurrence. Remember that clause 10.2 of the
14001:2015 standard specifies how to deal with nonconformity and corrective action, and
documenting any changes that may occur in your EMS due to repairing nonconformity falls firmly
into that category. So, if you treat the process of repairing a nonconformity as you would with any
corrective action, you will have evidence to demonstrate compliance to the auditor if executed
correctly. While prevention is better than cure, we understand that in reality there will be instances
where we have to fix problems identified by an auditor.

5. Explain phases of environmental audit in industries.

What does an environmental audit involve? Here are the 5 environmental audit phases.
When businesses consider conducting an audit or implementing an audit program, they need to
first review information about the benefits and limitations of auditing. These informational sources
could include journal articles, case studies, or books that describe environmental auditing
programs, various types of audits, and the lessons learned from such audits.
This necessary background information gives businesses a better understanding of the scope of
auditing, allows them to make informed decisions based on their audits, and demonstrates the best
way for them to apply the information they’ve learned to their operations.
Step 1: Schedule the Audit
The process of an environmental audit starts with an organization’s Environmental Management
Representative (EMR) scheduling audits at an appropriate risk-based frequency. Environmental
managers can determine how frequently the audit should be performed through consultation with
relevant Government Agencies and/or a review of specific project requirements.
When scheduling the audit, EMRs should coordinate the timing to minimize disruptions to project
operations. They also need to record the audit in each Environmental Management Plan (EMP)
using the appropriate template from their Environmental Management Systems (EMS) manual.
Step 2: Plan the Audit
The next step in the environmental audit is for the EMR to establish and document the
Area/Contractor to be audited, the reason and scope of the audit, and the contact names for the
Area/Contractor.
The EMR must also appoint and notify a qualified Lead Auditor or audit member if required. If
warranted, the EMR can appoint themselves as the Lead Auditor.
Step 3: Conduct the Audit
All relevant personnel in the Audit Team should meet to discuss the scope of the audit, the
proposed audit agenda, the audit objectives, any project personnel that need to be contacted or
interviewed, and a tentative time to hold the exit meeting.
Step 4: Develop an Audit Report/Action Plan
The environment audit team needs to prepare a report based on all the objective evidence that was
collected during the audit.
This report must be forwarded to the Contractor within 2 days of completion of the audit. The final
report must be distributed to the Auditor, Contractor, Independent Reviewer and Environmental
Auditor, the State, and all other relevant personnel.
Step 5: Audit Follow-Up
The EMR will follow up on the closing out of any remaining contract items by the Contractor. It
can be done separately and can even be done whenever the next relevant audit takes place,
depending on how significant the finding is.

6. What are steps preferred to identify and correct non-conformance in environmental

management systems.
Step one: identify the issue
This process begins by identifying when something doesn’t happen as expected. It could be a
customer complaint about bad service, or the identification of faulty packaging during an internal
inspection. These errors can be picked up in several ways, from staff logging their observations on
a spreadsheet through to internal audits and management reviews.
Once spotted, it needs to be recorded in a Non-conformity Report or Corrective Action Report.
Within this report, you must identify the impact of the non-conformity and who will be affected
by it. Here’s an example of a typical non-conformity log entry:
When a non-conformity has been spotted, it’s important to focus on facts and ask yourself the
following questions:
What is the problem and what is its history?
Where did it occur?
When did it happen and when was it reported?
How big is the problem, how frequent is it and how is it being measured?
Once identified you may also need to kick-start some kind of containment process or interim
response. This could range from stopping deliveries to rebooking appointments. The key is to stop
the problem from reaching your customer. This will also give you time to investigate the root cause
of the issue and put a more permanent corrective action in place. Before you do, you need to be
sure that this containment or interim action will stop the problem. You should therefore test the
new action and review its effectiveness.
Step two: Gather a response crew
Your next step is to gather together a team who can help to determine the root cause of the problem
and implement the corrective action. This will probably involve personnel at the top of your
company, but you will also need to include those who do the actual job. Your team can be any size
– it depends on the size and complexity of your problem. If you’re a sole trader, you may be the
only member. If you do have more personnel, just be aware that a very large team can be unwieldy.
To make your team as effective as possible, they need to have the right knowledge about the
process or problem involved. You will also need to give them enough time and resources to
complete an investigation as well as the authority to enact corrective action. A team of several
people means that a team leader will be necessary too. Your team will need to be comfortable
carrying out a comparative analysis.
Step three: Finding the root cause
There are lots of different problem-solving techniques that can help you get to the bottom of a non-
conformity. You should use the one that you are most comfortable with. If you’re unsure, one of
the simplest is known as the ‘five whys. You don’t need any advanced maths skills with this
approach, but it still helps you to identify causation. It is also suitable for sole traders or those with
a team behind them. The first ‘why’ focuses on why the problem is occurring. Instigate a fact-
finding mission to answer this question. Don’t make an educated guess – use evidence to determine
exactly what happened. Asking this question may reveal one answer or several. For each answer,
ask the question ‘why’ again. Keep doing this until you have asked a total of five ‘whys’, each one
relating to the answers you have supplied to the previous question. By this stage, an appropriate
countermeasure or corrective action should be evident. If not, continue to ask ‘why’ until you can’t
go any further. Using the example from the non-conformity log, the ‘whys’ would run as follows.
Step four: Taking corrective action
Whatever problem-solving tool you have used, you should now have a fairly good idea of what
permanent corrective action could be taken. A permanent corrective action means that it should
stop the non-conformity from happening again. This means you will probably have to change some
aspect of your processes, policies or procedures.
Step five: Monitoring and measuring
Once your corrective actions are in place, you can kick-start the monitoring and reviewing process.
A register containing a summary of the non-conformity, the results of your analysis and your
actions and decisions must be maintained.
7. Explain Environmental statement Form V.
In today’s world every industry is optimizing their Sources, equipments, Processes to face
increasing competitions are forced to minimize Environmental pollution. There is need of
pressure on Pollution contributing industries to optimize their production by improving
production technologies.
The only mandatory process in Environmental Statement is to fill up the Form V and submit it to
Pollution Control Board. If you notice Form V there are fields where industry needs to put their
last year’s Numbers with Current Years Numbers to identify where they stand.
Notification for Environmental Statement form v Published on 28 Apr 1992 by Ministry of
Environment and Forest. As per act (Water, Air and Hazardous waste) Every Industry should
submit environmental Statement for financial year ending (i.e. 31st Mar) to concerned state
Pollution Control Board.
In the Environmental Statement every industry should to provide Information on Production,
Consumption of raw, Water, Pollutants discharged in environment, Solid and Hazardous waste
with their Treatment Processes.
Important things to be reported to Pollution control board are:
• If that company is reusing its by-products or waste material which results in Reduction in
consumption of Air, Water or energy.
• Production cost
• Additional Investment proposals for environmental Protection i.e. up-gradation, Improvement
in Process or New Equipment to reduce Environmental Pollution.
8. Explain environmental due diligence audit.
Environmental Due Diligence (EDD) is the assessment and management of environmental
liabilities and risks. This can take various forms and be accomplished through several methods,
but the objective is always the same: to establish that your organisation is compliant with
environmental regulation and safeguarded against environmental accidents such as soil and/or
groundwater contamination.
Environmental Due Diligence is both a legal and technical exercise – an action of analysing your
organisation’s site or a site your organisation is looking to acquire. It is often demonstrated by a
formal assessment of the organisation and land to identify any existing or previous environmental
conditions and/or contaminations and quantify financial and legal risks.
Importance
Environmental Due Diligence is a form of proactive environmental management. As mentioned in
our blog from last week, ‘Proactive Environmental Management and Why it Matters’, there are a
number of reasons why a proactive approach to environmental management is important. These
include (but are not limited to):
Avoidance of legal prosecution;
Top Management support and involvement in environmental attitude and performance;
Positive public relations;
Long-term capital gain;
Improved environmental performance.
In addition to being proactive, unrecognised environmental liabilities and/or permit requirements
can prove costly for organisations. By executing EDD, an organisation will have awareness of
historical environmental aspects and permit requirements that might produce large remedial bills
in the future. This also allows for the appropriate management measures to be put in place.
Furthermore, Environmental Due Diligence is closely linked to the ‘polluter pays principle’ as set
out in the Environmental Damage (Prevention and Remediation) (England) Regulations 2015. The
‘polluter pays principle’ states that any producer of pollution will be responsible to pay for its
clean-up and remediation. This links to EDD because if an organisation purchases or inherits land
that is already polluted, and the previous occupier cannot be found and/or there is no evidence to
support the claim that the pollution was caused by the previous occupier, the burden to clean-up
and remediate any negative environmental impacts of the pollution is also inherited. Thus, EDD
can aid in an organisation’s understanding of their liability for clean-up operations, provide
defence against prosecution and mitigate the amount of any imposed fines.
Application to organizations
In order to combat the negative impacts of failing to consider EDD, an organisation should
undertake an EDD audit. Environmental Due Diligence audits are dependent on the size of the
organisation, current and historical site activities and the industry sector in which the organisation
operates. However, all audits tend to include the following (list is not exhaustive):
Legal compliance audit;
Physical sampling and laboratory analysis;
Phase I & II Environmental Site Assessments;
Soil and groundwater investigation.
It is important to remember that not all sites are the same and sometimes more measures are
necessary to ensure that all environmental issues are captured.

9. Define an audit. Explain the principles of auditing.

Environmental auditing is essentially an environmental management tool for measuring the effects of
certain activities on the environment against set criteria or standards. Depending on the types of standards
and the focus of the audit, there are different types of environmental audit. Organizations of all kinds now
recognize the importance of environmental matters and accept that their environmental performance will
be scrutinized by a wide range of interested parties. Environmental auditing is used to

 investigate
 understand
 identify

These are used to help improve existing human activities, with the aim of reducing the adverse effects of
these activities on the environment. An environmental auditor will study an organization’s environmental
effects in a systematic and documented manner and will produce an environmental audit report. There are
many reasons for undertaking an environmental audit, which include issues such as environmental
legislation and pressure from customers.

ISO 19011- 7 key principles:

ISO 19011 defines 7 key principles that help to ensure audits are effective and reliable tools,
supporting the management systems they are auditing by providing actionable information that
organizations can use to improve performance.
These principles are designed to enable auditors working independently from one another to reach
similar conclusions in similar circumstances.
They also form the basis for the guidance outlined in the three key elements of an ISO audit that
appear later on in this article (and in ISO 19011, clauses 5 to 7).
(i) Integrity: The foundation of professionalism
Auditors and audit programme managers should perform their work ethically, in an honest and
responsible manner, and using their best judgement should:
Undertake audit activities only if competent to do so
Perform work in a fair and unbiased manner
Remain sensitive to influences exerted upon their judgement while carrying out audits
(ii) Fair presentation: the obligation to report truthfully and accurately
All audit findings, including documented evidence, conclusions and written reports should reflect
truthfully and accurately the activities of the audit.
This includes any obstacles, disagreements with other auditors, or difficulties faced during the
audit. Everything must be adequately documented.
It goes without saying that all communication, not just documented and reported information,
should be truthful, timely, rational, clear, and complete.
(iii) Due professional care: Diligence and judgement in auditing
Auditors should exercise due professional care in all tasks performed during the audit, in
accordance with the confidence placed in them by the auditee and in recognition of the importance
of the task they are performing.
One of the most important requirements of this principle is that auditors have the ability to make
reasoned judgements in all situations during the audit.
(iv) Confidentiality: Security of information
Auditors should respect the confidentiality of all information they’re dealing with throughout the
audit.
This means exercising due diligence in making sure all information acquired during the course of
their duties as auditors is respected and adequately protected.
Making sure information is secure includes taking special precautions where necessary, such as
handling sensitive or confidential information.
(v) Independence: Audit impartiality and objectivity
Audits, by nature, should be independent of the activity being audited, to the furthest extent
possible. They should not interfere with the activity, nor should they hold any bias or conflict of
interest.
If possible, internal audits should preferably be independent from the function being audited.
Key to all audits is the pursuit of objectivity via rational process, to make sure all findings and
results from the audit are based only on audit evidence.
Smaller organizations may find it difficult to enlist truly independent auditors; as such every effort
should be made to eliminate bias and encourage the pursuit of rational objectivity.
(vi) Evidence-based approach.
(vii) Risk-based approach.

10. Explain the roles and qualifications of environmental auditor.

Who can be an ISO Auditor?
Anyone can be an ISO internal as well as external auditor.
Internal auditor: Is from inside the company, trained to do internal auditing. They conduct auditing
of the company on behalf of the company.
External auditors: Professional auditors work for the certification bodies. There are no mandatory
qualifications to become an auditor but certification bodies are required to demonstrate that their
auditors are competent.
Achieving auditor competence
Auditor competence can be acquired using a combination of the following: a) successfully
completing training programmes that cover generic auditor knowledge and skills; b) experience in
a relevant technical, managerial or professional position involving the exercise of judgement,
decision making, problem solving and communication with managers, professionals, peers,
customers and other relevant interested parties; c) education/training and experience in a specific
management system discipline and sector that contribute to the development of overall
competence; d) audit experience acquired under the supervision of an auditor competent in the
same discipline.
ISO 19011 defines 7 key principles that help to ensure audits are effective and reliable tools,
supporting the management systems they are auditing by providing actionable information that
organizations can use to improve performance.
These principles are designed to enable auditors working independently from one another to reach
similar conclusions in similar circumstances.
(i) Integrity: The foundation of professionalism
Auditors and audit programme managers should perform their work ethically, in an honest and
responsible manner, and using their best judgement should:
Undertake audit activities only if competent to do so
Perform work in a fair and unbiased manner
Remain sensitive to influences exerted upon their judgement while carrying out audits
(ii) Fair presentation: the obligation to report truthfully and accurately
All audit findings, including documented evidence, conclusions and written reports should reflect
truthfully and accurately the activities of the audit.
This includes any obstacles, disagreements with other auditors, or difficulties faced during the
audit. Everything must be adequately documented.
It goes without saying that all communication, not just documented and reported information,
should be truthful, timely, rational, clear, and complete.
(iii) Due professional care: Diligence and judgement in auditing
Auditors should exercise due professional care in all tasks performed during the audit, in
accordance with the confidence placed in them by the auditee and in recognition of the importance
of the task they are performing.
One of the most important requirements of this principle is that auditors have the ability to make
reasoned judgements in all situations during the audit.
(iv) Confidentiality: Security of information
Auditors should respect the confidentiality of all information they’re dealing with throughout the
audit.
This means exercising due diligence in making sure all information acquired during the course of
their duties as auditors is respected and adequately protected.
Making sure information is secure includes taking special precautions where necessary, such as
handling sensitive or confidential information.
(v) Independence: Audit impartiality and objectivity
Audits, by nature, should be independent of the activity being audited, to the furthest extent
possible. They should not interfere with the activity, nor should they hold any bias or conflict of
interest.
If possible, internal audits should preferably be independent from the function being audited.
Key to all audits is the pursuit of objectivity via rational process, to make sure all findings and
results from the audit are based only on audit evidence.
Smaller organizations may find it difficult to enlist truly independent auditors; as such every effort
should be made to eliminate bias and encourage the pursuit of rational objectivity.
(vi) Evidence-based approach.
(vii) Risk-based approach.

11. Explain the steps involved in auditing.

Step 1: Schedule the Audit
The process of an environmental audit starts with an organization’s Environmental Management
Representative (EMR) scheduling audits at an appropriate risk-based frequency. Environmental
managers can determine how frequently the audit should be performed through consultation with
relevant Government Agencies and/or a review of specific project requirements.
When scheduling the audit, EMRs should coordinate the timing to minimize disruptions to project
operations. They also need to record the audit in each Environmental Management Plan (EMP)
using the appropriate template from their Environmental Management Systems (EMS) manual.
Step 2: Plan the Audit
The next step in the environmental audit is for the EMR to establish and document the
Area/Contractor to be audited, the reason and scope of the audit, and the contact names for the
Area/Contractor.
The EMR must also appoint and notify a qualified Lead Auditor or audit member if required. If
warranted, the EMR can appoint themselves as the Lead Auditor.
Step 3: Conduct the Audit
All relevant personnel in the Audit Team should meet to discuss the scope of the audit, the
proposed audit agenda, the audit objectives, any project personnel that need to be contacted or
interviewed, and a tentative time to hold the exit meeting.
Step 4: Develop an Audit Report/Action Plan
The environment audit team needs to prepare a report based on all the objective evidence that was
collected during the audit.
This report must be forwarded to the Contractor within 2 days of completion of the audit. The final
report must be distributed to the Auditor, Contractor, Independent Reviewer and Environmental
Auditor, the State, and all other relevant personnel.
Step 5: Audit Follow-Up
The EMR will follow up on the closing out of any remaining contract items by the Contractor. It
can be done separately and can even be done whenever the next relevant audit takes place,
depending on how significant the finding is.

12. With suitable example, explain corrective and preventive actions after preparation of
checklist.
The systematic process for CAPA has not really changed in the newer ISO management system
standards, which are aligned with the ISO Annex SL format. Corrective actions are about
improving behavior or performance of the process, and this hasn’t changed. In general, you need
to:
1) Identify the process problem – Define what the problem actually is. First, make sure the
problem is, in fact, a real problem, and not a perceived problem. A good test is if you can write the
problem with a requirement to compare, what is often called a “Should Be” and “Is” statement
(e.g. Parts should be nickel plated, parts were received painted black). If you can’t say what the
outcome should be (or is expected to be), then you may not have identified a real problem.
2) Identify how big the problem is – What is the scope of the problem? Make sure you understand
how big the problem to be addressed is. Is it just today’s product, or was yesterday’s product
affected too? Is it just this one product, or is it on more than one product? Make sure you know
what the problem is, and more importantly, what it is not. If the problem only happens on
Wednesday, this may be important information.
3) Take action to contain the problem – How can we stop the problem while we fix the root
cause? Make a correction to stop the problem for right now while you look for the ultimate cause
and fix that. Basically, what immediate checks or stop gap measures are you putting in place to
make sure that you will definitely catch the problem again if it recurs while you are fixing it.
4) Identify the root cause of the problem – What is the base of the problem, not just the surface
manifestation? This is the trickiest part. How do you make sure you have found the underlying
issue? There are many different ways to do this, from asking “Why” five times until you find the
ultimate cause, to more difficult methods like a classic Ishikawa (or Fishbone) Diagram. Whole
training courses have been dedicated to this topic, but suffice it to say that you want to try to
identify the underlying problem, not just a surface problem. After this step, it is wise to make sure
that your scope has not become bigger, making further containment actions necessary.
5) Come up with a plan to fix the root cause – What do you need to change to eliminate the root
cause? Decide what steps are needed to eliminate the root cause of the problem. Here, depending
on the problem, you will need to identify the cost and return on investment. How will it be funded
(if it is a complicated and expensive fix), and who needs to approve the expense? Make sure the
planned changes will not cause further problems.
6) Put your plan in place – Do what you have planned. This is as simple as following through on
your plan and making it happen. It could be as simple as implementing the preventive maintenance
program already described, or buying and installing a new piece of equipment because the old one
could no longer keep the accuracy you need.
7) Check that your plan worked – Make sure your plan was effective. Simply put, after you have
made your updates, wait a suitable amount of time and make sure the problem doesn’t recur. If it
does, you need to question if you got the actual root cause. This is the most important step, but
also the step that most companies have trouble with. Often, people want to close out the paperwork
quickly, or think the registrar requires closure early to demonstrate timeliness, but proper follow-
up is essential.
Many companies will have a corrective action form that follows this process, or a modified
process, to capture the information and ensure that you do not forget any steps. Having a good
systematic process is important to find and fix the root of the problem for large, systemic issues
within your organization. If you only treat the symptom, then the problem will come back. The
goal of corrective actions is to correct the root of the problem, so the failure does not recur.
13. What are roles and responsibilities of the auditor.
Environmental auditors assess the environmental operations and procedures for businesses,
governments, or utility companies. They are responsible for making sure the environmental
standards are being met by the business and detecting existing compliance problems or
environmental management deficiencies. Once problems are detected, they make
recommendations for corrections.
Environmental auditors conduct two different types of audits: environmental compliance audits
and management performance audits. The compliance audit is described above. A management
performance audit measures how a business is meeting criteria for management systems.
Typical Job Duties of Environmental Auditors
As an environmental auditor, you will be responsible for the regular auditing of all environmental
policies and procedures. This involves working with an audit team and with staff to get a good
picture of how environmental compliance is being handled. You will be responsible for:
Selecting and managing the audit team
Reviewing the operations of the business being audited and determining how environmental issues
are being handled
Gathering data on the business operations through on-site inspections, document reviews, staff
interviews, and other methods
Check business records for governmental permits and requirements, safety standards,
maintenance, and inventory control measures
Review emergency preparedness and response procedures
Review management systems, environmental monitoring programs and waste management efforts
Review employee training procedures and programs and the work environment for compliance
with government and corporate standards
Write and compile final audit reports including results of the audit and recommendations for
changes and improvement
Present the audit findings to the business managers and directors
Assist in the development of an environmental management plan
Follow up at a future time to ensure improvements and recommendations have been successfully
implemented.

14. Explain in detail about the waste audit.

A waste audit is a method for analyzing an organization’s waste stream. The goal is to discover
what types and quantities of waste (paper, plastic, food etc.) you produce within a given
timeframe—usually a week. Auditing also measures how much waste is recycled vs. thrown out.
Businesses usually conduct waste audits in order to set recycling, reduction and diversion goals as
they prepare to go green or seek LEED Certification.
How to Conduct a Waste Audit
I. Assemble a Team & Set a Date
Find a volunteer from each department to form the company’s waste auditing team. Aim for at
least five people. May be one can hold audits every quarter, also it is recommended making this
group an ongoing “Sustainability Committee” who can oversee any changes the company wants
to make as a result of the audit.
Next, pick a week for the audit. The auditors might want a clear picture of the normal trash output,
so choose a week without any special events and when most of the staff will be in the office. If the
company has an outside custodial staff, make sure they know to hold off on emptying the trash
that week.
II. Determine the company’s Waste Categories
Before “Waste Audit Week” rolls around, make a list of the most common trash types the
business produces. This list can be general in the initial stage—if the audit reveals different
categories, the auditors can always add them to the list as the audit proceeds.
Common Waste Audit Categories:
i. Paper
ii. Cardboard
iii. Plastic bottles
iv. Other plastic
v. Aluminum cans
vi. Glass
vii. Food waste
viii. Materials packaging
ix. Signage
x. Display materials

III. Gather Your Tools

Before the main audit, the team would need to stock up on a few supplies to make sure the team
can work safely.
Tools Needed for a Waste Audit:
i. An open area for sorting the trash.
ii. Rubber gloves for each volunteer.
iii. Face masks for each volunteer.
iv. Tongs for each volunteer (optional).
v. Labelled boxes for sorting each waste category.
vi. A bathroom scale for weighing each category.
vii. Clipboards for recording the findings.
viii. Trash bags for re-bagging the waste after the audit.

IV. Sort the Trash

It’s time for the real work to begin. Here’s how to do a waste audit.
At the end of the week, round up all the trash and recycling from the building.
If the auditors would like to gather department-specific data, label each trash bag with the
department it came from.
Weigh all the trash to get a baseline for how much the company throws out each week.
Weigh all the recyclables to establish how much the company can recycle each week.
Wearing gloves, sort all materials into the boxes for their categories. If the trash is labelled by
department, make sure each has separate boxes.
As the auditors work, any recyclables mixed in with trash must be noted.
Once everything has been sorted, weigh each category.
V. Analyze the Results
Now that all weights are recorded, this data can be used for a waste stream analysis.
a. Calculate and record the waste diversion rate using this process:
Divide the weight of the recyclables by the combined weight of all your waste (trash +
recyclables).
Multiply the result by 100.
This gives the percentage of waste you divert from the landfill each week.
b. Look at the weights recorded for individual waste categories.
i. Which categories are highest?
ii. Did the highest categories differ between departments?
iii. Were any recyclables mixed in with the trash?
iv. Were there categories the auditors initially realize was present?
v. Don’t lose track of this waste audit report.
vi. As one takes steps to reduce waste, these numbers will become a powerful
marketing tool, it can be used to show customers how hard you’re working at greening
your operation.
VI. Next Steps after Waste Auditing
i. Determine whether the dumpster size and pickup frequency still matches the
company’s needs.
ii. If the trash output changed, a different size or number of pickups may be more cost-
effective.
iii. Hire a recycling service if the company doesn’t already have one.
iv. If the company is only recycling a few items, consider recycling more—either
through your current service or one that specializes in waste from your industry.
v. Set a goal for increasing the current recycling rate.
vi. Create recycling guidelines for meeting that goal and share them with the company
staff.
vii. Set a goal for reducing the amount of waste in the largest categories.
viii. Determine the steps to meet that goal and let the staff know. For example, the
auditors might switch to online bill pay to reduce paper. Or buy a different coffee
maker to avoid wasteful coffee pods.
15. Discuss how pollution prevention is integrated into compliance audits.
Rapid industrial growth in countries like China and India has greatly reduced poverty, but it has
also led to severe air and water pollution, resulting in shorter and sicker lives for millions of people.
The World Health Organization estimated that in 2016, urban air pollution caused 4.2 million
deaths worldwide, most of which were in low- and middle-income countries.1
To curb pollution, regulators need to know which plants are polluting most. One way to monitor
industry compliance with environmental regulations is through third-party auditors. However, in
most countries, auditors are managed and paid by the company they are auditing, creating a conflict
of interest. In these systems, auditors may distort or falsify their reporting to maintain good
relationships with the companies they audit. Furthermore, if auditors do not report the truth, there
is no reason for the plants to comply since regulators will not know if they fail to meet pollution
limits.
In 1996, the Indian state of Gujarat sought to strengthen its environmental regulatory framework
by introducing the first third-party environmental audit system in India. The initial system,
however, was thought to produce unreliable information about pollution. Recognizing this
problem, GPCB sought out researchers to help reform the audit market in 2009.
Researchers partnered with the gpcb to test the effectiveness of an improved third-party audit
system on audit accuracy and pollution. From a sample of 473 industrial plants in Ahmedabad and
Surat, the two largest cities in Gujarat, 233 were randomly assigned to receive a new audit system
in which auditors were randomly assigned to the industrial plants they would monitor, paid from
a common pool, and monitored for accuracy. The remaining 240 plants served as the comparison
group and remained in the status quo audit system.
To measure audit accuracy, researchers compared the pollution readings from auditors’ reports to
the pollution readings from the independent back checks. Auditors and back checkers used the
same technology and standardized procedures to measure pollution, looking at six water pollutants,
including biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, and total dissolved and
suspended solids, and three air pollutants: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and suspended
particulate matter. Back checks were conducted in a random subset of plants soon after auditors
had measured pollution in those plants in 2009 and 2010. They were also conducted in all plants
one year after the new audit system was in place. This allowed researchers to directly measure
auditors’ accuracy under the status quo and new systems as the difference between the auditor and
back check pollution readings. This measurement is unique as it is generally not possible to observe
the truthfulness of auditor reports in other contexts.
Results:
The core problem in Gujarat’s environmental audit system—that auditors had poor incentives to
report pollution levels accurately when they were chosen and paid by the firms they audited—
exists in virtually all other third-party audit systems. This evaluation provides the first-ever
findings on removing the fundamental conflict of interest that characterizes third-party audit
markets. It seems reasonable to assume that a version of these reforms adapted to the particular
institutional features of other third-party audit markets would produce similar results.
The new audit system led auditors to report pollution more truthfully and substantially lowered
the number of plants that were falsely reported as compliant with pollution standards.
When auditors were hired and paid by the plants they were auditing, they did not provide regulators
with reliable information about pollution. There is evidence that many auditors did not even
conduct all the tests necessary to complete a full audit. If they are to be an effective policy tool for
enforcing regulation, third-party audit systems must be designed to incentivize accurate reporting.
Randomly assigning auditors to industrial plants, paying them a fixed fee from a central pool, and
double checking their accuracy led auditors to report industrial pollution much more accurately.
When the environmental regulator received better information about pollution levels, industrial
plants responded. In response to more accurate pollution audits, the dirtiest industrial plants
reduced their emissions substantially.
This suggests that plants may also change their behavior if the regulator obtained more accurate
information through other means, such as its own inspections or better emissions monitoring
technologies.
Eliminating conflicts of interest for auditors could improve third-party audit systems in other
sectors beyond environmental regulation.

16. Explain Management Systems audit as per ISO 19011.

Quality Glossary Definition: ISO 19011
ISO 19011 is defined as the standard that sets forth guidelines for auditing management systems.
The standard contains guidance on managing an audit program, the principles of auditing, and the
evaluation of individuals responsible for managing the audit programs. An audit program consists
of the arrangements made to complete all of the individual audits needed to achieve a specific
purpose.
ISO 19011:2018 provides valuable information on how to improve an audit program
systematically, just as other departments in an organization are expected to improve. One aspect
of such improvement is continuously ensuring the audit program objectives are in line with the
management system policies and objectives. Organizations, in pushing for auditing improvements,
should consider the needs of customers and other interested parties.
An area of increasing importance in auditing management systems and business in general is
the concept of risk. As of the 2011 edition, risk has been integrated throughout the audit program
management section of the ISO 19011:2018 standard.
ISO 19011 Standard Facts
When the United States adopts its version of a standard, it is referred to as an American National
Standard (ANS) and is the equivalent of an international standard.
The ANSI version may or may not make changes to the international (ISO) version of the
standard. In the case of ISO 19011, it is considered an identical adoption.
Who should use ISO 19011:2018?
If your organization conducts internal or external audits of management systems, or if you
manage an audit program, then ISO 19011 and the ANSI version apply to you.
Anyone involved in audits or audit programs can use ISO 19011. More specifically, ISO 19011
is for people in charge of managing an audit program and evaluating individuals involved in the
audit programs and audits. Anyone who has been tasked with improving an audit program will
likely find ISO 19011:2018 of value.

What does ISO 19011:2018 accomplish?

 ISO 19011 offers guidance on every step of auditing a management system or audit
program, including:
 Defining program objectives
 Ensuring you understand the specific objectives you hope to achieve
 Making audit arrangements
 Assigning roles and responsibilities
 Defining number, scope, location, and duration of audits
 Determining criteria and specific checklists
 Establishing review procedures
 Completing the audits needed
 Planning and reviewing internal documents
 Collecting and verifying audit evidence
 Generating findings and preparing reports
 Communicating findings
 Reviewing the results and process
 Assessing results and trends
 Conforming with audit program procedures
 Evolving needs and expectations of interested parties
 Analyzing audit program records
 Examining effectiveness of the measures to address risks
 Ensuring confidentiality and information security