An Introduction To Responsible Care
An Introduction To Responsible Care
An Introduction To Responsible Care
Report on
Roll no.22421015
MBA-1 (Section-A)
INTRODUCTION
An EMS is an excellent mechanism for both understanding and promoting positive change
within a city or local authority. It enables private companies, central and state agencies, and other
organizations to establish and assesses the effectiveness of, procedures to set environmental
policy and objectives, achieve compliance, and demonstrate such compliance to others. This is
because EMS focuses attention upon a number of critical organizational factors, including
productive processes and technologies, management styles and systems, worker education and
participation, internal communications, and relations with regulatory agencies, other
governments, and neighboring communities. The process of establishing an EMS requires “buy-
in” from different levels of management and from employees. The successful implementation of
an EMS creates positive change, environmental awareness and continuous improvement.
EMS applied to local authorities provides a systematic approach to develop policies, practices
and procedures that are able to respond to the social, economic and environmental challenges
ahead. In order to accomplish their goals for implementing an EMS efficiently, accurately and
effectively, organizations need tools to assist them. In particular, experts and city managers
recognize and highlight a lack of education and training tools specifically designed to enable
local authorities assess the benefits, design and implement an EMS that meets their specific
needs. Organizations in particular local authorities of cities and towns need a sound
understanding of the environmental effects and impacts of the lifestyles, behaviors and values of
its citizens. Need to understand that the environment has strategic implications which must be
addressed by all stakeholders - at the global and local levels. Need for decision-making tools and
decision support systems that enable implementation of EMSs. After reading this unit, you will
be able to:
• Describe the key environmental issues concerning urbanization and in particular the
opportunities for better environmental management of cities and urban areas.
• Develop easy to use environmental management tools that can be used to implement
coordinated environmental policies and programmers involving all concerned stakeholders.
In other words, an EMS focuses on environmental management practices, rather than the
activities themselves. The EMS provides the structure by which the specific activities can be
carried out efficiently and in a manner consistent with key organizational goals, but does not
specify levels of performance (just for instance the EMS will ensure that proper procedures are
in place and that operator training exists, but won’t specify methods or frequency of sampling).
The EMS allows an organization the flexibility to adapt the system to its needs and priorities,
rather than forcing a “one size fits all” mentality. Implementation of an EMS is a voluntary
approach to improving environmental performance. Over the years, many public and private
sector organizations have implemented EMSs, and their numbers grow daily. These
organizations report a number of important EMS benefits.
The environment has become an important factor in the decision-making process of companies
around the world. Environmental issues are becoming more 62 Sustainable Development
complexes and interconnected. Traditional ways of addressing environmental issues - in a
reactive, ad-hoc, end-of-pipe manner - are proving to be highly inefficient. As competition
increases within the expanding global market, environmental laws and regulations are setting
new standards for business in every region of the world. But good environmental performance is
not just a legal or moral obligation. It also makes good business sense. Reducing pollution means
increasing efficiency and wasting fewer resources. Improved health and safety conditions result
in a more productive workforce. Supplying goods and services that respect the environment
helps to expand markets and improve sales.
In short, companies become more competitive when they practice good environmental
management system.
On the other hand, the risks posed by mismanaging environmental issues are complex and
varied. They include the obvious, such as damage to the environment with negative
consequences for the overall standard of living. They can also include damage to a company’s
reputation and a resulting loss of confidence among customers, neighbors and shareholders, the
loss of market share, and, of course, legal liabilities. Such risks cannot be dealt with on an ad-hoc
basis. As with any financial or commercial risk, only a well-founded and properly implemented
management approach can provide a measure of confidence that good performance is not an
accident and that poor performance can be identified and rectified. By properly implementing an
appropriate environmental management system (EMS), any company, large or small, can ensure
that they effectively manage environmental risks while identifying and exploiting the myriad
opportunities proper environmental management can bring. Such a systematic approach to
environmental management is at the very heart of the ISO 14001 standard. This checklist is
intended to allow managers of industrial facilities to review existing operations and management
approaches against this standard to determine how well they measure up to what is soon to be
considered as “state-of-the-art” in effective approaches to environmental management.
• Analyze the aspect of the organization’s overall management structure that addresses
immediate and long-term impacts of its products, services and processes on the environment
• Gives order and consistency for organizations to address environmental concerns through the
allocation of resources, assignment of responsibility and ongoing evaluation of practices,
procedures and processes
ISO 14000
ISO is the International Organization for Standardization. It has a membership of 160 national
standards institutes from countries large and small, industrialized, developing and in transition,
in all regions of the world. ISO’s portfolio of more than 18 000 standards provides practical tools
for all three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, environmental and societal.
ISO standards for business, government and society as a whole make a positive contribution to
the world we live in. They ensure vital features such as quality, ecology, safety, economy,
reliability, compatibility, interoperability, conformity, efficiency and effectiveness. They
facilitate trade, spread knowledge, and share technological advances and good management
practice.
ISO develops only those standards that are required by the market. This work is carried out by
experts on loan from the industrial, technical and business sectors which have asked for the
standards, and which subsequently put them to use. These experts may be joined by others with
relevant knowledge, such as representatives of government agencies, testing laboratories,
consumer associations and academia, and by nongovernmental or other stakeholder
organizations that have a specific interest in the issues addressed in the standards.
ISO has a multi-faceted approach to meeting the needs of all stakeholders from business,
industry, governmental authorities and nongovernmental organizations, as well as consumers, in
the field of the environment.
1. ISO has developed standards that help organizations to take a proactive approach to managing
environmental issues: the ISO 14000 family of environmental management standards which can
be implemented in any type of organization in either public or private sectors – from companies
to administrations to public utilities.
2. ISO is helping to meet the challenge of climate change with standards for greenhouse gas
accounting, verification and emissions trading, and for measuring the carbon footprint of
products.
3. ISO develops normative documents to facilitate the fusion of business and environmental
goals by encouraging the inclusion of environmental aspects in product design.
4. ISO offers a wide-ranging portfolio of standards for sampling and test methods to deal with
specific environmental challenges. It has developed some 570 International Standards for the
monitoring of such aspects as the quality of air, water and the soil, as well as noise, radiation,
and for controlling the transport of dangerous goods. They also serve in a number of countries as
the technical basis for environmental regulations.
Organizations around the world, as well as their stakeholders, are becoming increasingly aware
of the need for environmental management, socially responsible behavior, and sustainable
growth and development.
Accordingly, as the proactive management of environmental aspects converges with enterprise
risk management, corporate governance, and sound operational and financial practices and
performance, International Standards are becoming increasingly important for organizations to
work towards common and comparable environmental management practices to support the
sustainability of their organizations, products, and services.
Furthermore, governments and regulatory bodies are increasingly looking to ISO standards to
provide a framework to ensure alignment and consistency both nationally and internationally.
ISO International Standards and related normative documents provide consumers, regulators and
organizations in both public and private sectors with environmental tools with the following
characteristics:
9 Technically credible as ISO standards represent the sum of knowledge of a broad pool of
international expertise and stakeholders
9 Fulfill stakeholder needs as the ISO standards development process is based on international
input and consensus
9 Promote efficiencies when the same standards are implemented across markets, sectors,
and/or jurisdictions
9 Support regulatory compliance when the standards are used to meet market and regulatory
needs
9 Enhance investor confidence because the standards can be used for conformity assessment
such as by audit, inspection or certification. This enhances confidence in products, services and
systems that can be demonstrated to conform to ISO standards and provides practical support for
regulation.
Environmental management
Origins
ISO/TC 207 was established in 1993, as a result of ISO’s commitment to respond to the
complex challenge of “sustainable development” articulated at the 1992 United Nations
Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro.
It also stemmed from an intensive consultation process, carried out within the framework of the
ISO Strategic Advisory Group on Environment (SAGE). SAGE was established in 1991 and
brought together representatives of a variety of countries and international organizations – a total
of more than 100 environmental experts – who helped to define how International Standards
could support better environmental management.
As a result, the ISO 14000 family of standards for environmental management was launched to
provide a practical toolbox to assist in the implementation of actions supportive to sustainable
development
Compatibility
From its beginning, it was recognized that ISO/TC 207 should cooperate closely with ISO/TC
176, Quality management and quality assurance – the ISO technical committee responsible
for the ISO 9000 family of quality management standards – in the areas of management systems,
auditing and related terminology.
Successful steps have been taken to ensure compatibility of the ISO 14001 and ISO 9001
standards to facilitate their use by organizations that wish to implement both environmental and
quality management systems to benefit themselves and their customers and stakeholders. These
steps include a common standard (ISO 19011) giving guidelines for auditing environmental
and/or quality management systems
Global participation
Membership of ISO/TC 207 is among the highest of any ISO technical committee and is both
broad and diverse in representation, two key indicators of the worldwide interest in the work of
this technical committee. National delegations of environmental experts from over 100 countries
participate in ISO/TC 207, including 27 developing countries. The leadership of the committee is
“twinned” between a developed and developing country (currently Canada and Brazil).
The national delegations are chosen by the national standards institute concerned and they are
required to bring to ISO/TC 207 a national consensus on issues being addressed by the technical
committee. This national consensus is derived from a process of consultation with interested
parties and stakeholders in each country.
ISO/TC 207 continues to explore new and innovative ways to allow member countries to
contribute and participate in the standards development process without increasing their carbon
footprint.
ISO/TC 207 has relationships with over 30 international organizations that serve as liaison
members to the technical committee. These organizations include the following:
9 European Commissions
9 Sierra Club
Published documents and ongoing work of ISO/TC 207 address the following areas:
9 Environmental labeling
9 Environmental communications
The ISO 14000 family of standards reflects international consensus on good environmental and
business practice that can be applied by organizations all over the world in their specific context.
Overview of the ISO 14000 family of standards
Published standards
ISO 14001 is the world’s most recognized framework for environmental management systems
(EMS) – implemented from Argentina to Zimbabwe – that helps organizations both to manage
better the impact of their activities on the environment and to demonstrate sound environmental
management.
ISO 14001 has been adopted as a national standard by more than half of the 160 national
members of ISO and its use is encouraged by governments around the world. Although
certification of conformity to the standard is not a requirement of ISO 14001, at the end of 2007,
at least 154 572 certificates had been issued in 148 countries and economies.
Other environmental management tools developed by ISO/TC 207 include: ISO 14004, which
complements ISO 14001 by providing additional guidance and useful explanations.
Environmental audits are important tools for assessing whether an EMS is properly implemented
and maintained. The auditing standard, ISO 19011, is equally useful for EMS and quality
management system audits. It provides guidance on principles of auditing, managing audit
programs, the conduct of audits and on the competence of auditors.
ISO 14031 provides guidance on how an organization can evaluate its environmental
performance. The standard also addresses the selection of suitable performance indicators, so
that performance can be assessed against criteria set by management. This information can be
used as a basis for internal and external reporting on environmental performance.
Communication on the environmental aspects of products and services is an important way to
use market forces to influence environmental improvement.
Truthful and accurate information provides the basis on which consumers can make informed
purchasing decisions.
The ISO 14020 series of standards addresses a range of different approaches to environmental
labels and declarations, including eco-labels (seals of approval), self-declared environmental
claims, and quantified environmental information about products and services.
ISO 14001 addresses not only the environmental aspects of an organization’s processes, but also
those of its products and services. Therefore ISO/TC 207 has developed additional tools to assist
in addressing such aspects. Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a tool for identifying and evaluating
the environmental aspects of products and services from the “cradle to the grave” : from the
extraction of resource inputs to the eventual disposal of the product or its waste. The ISO 14040
standards give guidelines on the principles and conduct of LCA studies that provide an
organization with information on how to reduce the overall environmental impact of its products
and services.
ISO 14064 parts 1, 2 and 3 are international greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting and
verification standards which provide a set of clear and verifiable requirements to support
organizations and proponents of GHG emission reduction projects.
ISO provides guidance for addressing environmental aspects in product standards. Although
primarily aimed at standards developers, its guidance is also useful for designers and
manufacturers.
Sustainable development policy and practice has attracted considerable attention and debate in
the past 15 years. Our understanding of and concerns about environmental and sustainable
development issues have also evolved over time. Just as the existing ISO 14000 standards play
an important role in helping organizations to address today’s priorities, so too can future
standards help to address future priorities.
An integral part of an organization’s EMS is the commitment to continual improvement.
ISO/TC 207 takes this principle to heart and is constantly improving its process to identify and
respond to new standardization needs. ISO/TC 207’s success in continuing to work on relevant
standards is evidenced by the development of the following new standards:
ISO 14045 will provide principles and requirements for eco-efficiency assessment. Eco-
efficiency relates environmental performance to value created. The standard will establish an
internationally standardized methodological framework for eco-efficiency assessment, thus
supporting a comprehensive, understandable and transparent presentation of eco-efficiency
measures.
ISO 14051 will provide guidelines for general principles and framework of material flow cost
accounting (MFCA). MFCA is a management tool to promote effective resource utilization,
mainly in manufacturing and distribution processes, in order to reduce the relative consumption
of resources and material costs.
MFCA measures the flow and stock of materials and energy within an organization based on
physical unit (weight, capacity, volume and so on) and evaluates them according to
manufacturing costs, a factor which is generally overlooked by conventional cost accounting.
MFCA is one of the major tools of environmental management accounting (EMA) and is
oriented to internal use within an organization.
ISO 14067 on the carbon footprint of products will provide requirements for the
quantification and communication of greenhouse gases (GHGs) associated with products. The
purpose of each part will be to: quantify the carbon footprint; and harmonize methodologies for
communicating the carbon footprint information and also provide guidance for this
communication.
ISO 14069 will provide guidance for organizations to calculate carbon footprint of their
products, services and supply chain.
ISO 14005 will provide guidelines for the phased implementation of an EMS to facilitate the
take-up of EMS by small and medium-sized enterprises. It will include the use of environmental
performance evaluation. ISO 14006 will provide guidelines on eco-design.
ISO 14033 will provide guidelines and examples for compiling and communicating
quantitative environmental information.
Finally, ISO 14066 will specify competency requirements for greenhouse gas validators and
verifiers.
The development program of ISO/TC 207 is constantly evolving, driven by market needs.
Hence the above is a small sample of areas where standards are currently in development.
Although the ISO 14000 standards are designed to be mutually supportive, they can also be used
independently of each other to achieve environmental goals. The whole ISO 14000 family of
standards provides management tools for organizations to manage their environmental aspects
and assess their environmental performance. Together, these tools can provide significant
tangible economic benefits, including the following:
Of course, associated with each of these economic benefits are distinct environmental benefits
too. This is the contribution that the ISO 14000 series makes to the environmental and economic
components of sustainable development and the triple bottom line.
ISO/CD 14006 ISO/CD 14051 Environmental management – Material flow ISO 14065:2007
Environmental cost accounting – General principles and framework Greenhouse gases –
management systems – Requirements for
Guidelines on eco- greenhouse gas
design validation and
verification bodies for
use in accreditation or
other forms of
recognition
ISO/WD 14045
Eco-efficiency assessment – Principles and requirements
Manage greenhouse gases
ISO/TR 14062:2002 ISO 14064-1:2006 Greenhouse gases – Part 1: Specification ISO/CD 14066
Environmental with guidance at the organization level for quantification Greenhouse gases –
management – and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions and removals Competency
Integrating requirements for
environmental aspects greenhouse gas
into product design validators and verifiers
and development document
ISO 14064-2:2006 Greenhouse gases – Part 2 : Specification
with guidance at the project level for quantification,
monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gas emission
reductions or removal enhancements
ISO/WD 14067-1 Carbon footprint of products – Part 1:
Quantification ISO/WD 14067-2 Carbon footprint of
products – Part 2: Communication
ISO/AWI 14069 GHG – Quantification and reporting of GHG
emissions for organizations (Carbon footprint of
organization) – Guidance for the application of ISO 14064-1
Plan
ISO 14000
Act Family of Do
Standards
Check
The management process involves performance of certain fundamental functions. One useful
classification of managerial functions has been given by Luther Gulick, who abbreviating them
using the word POSDCORB - Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing, Coordinating,
Reporting and Budgeting. There is no commonly held opinion about the managerial functions
proposed by different experts. By combining many of those views, this unit discusses the
managerial functions under the headings
i) Planning
ii) Organizing
iii) Staffing
iv) Directing
v) Coordinating
vi) Controlling
vii) Budgeting
viii) Delegation
ix) Leading
Management Process
Importance of Management
i) It helps in achieving group goals – It arranges, organize and integrate the resources
in effective manner to achieve developmental goals. It directs group efforts towards
achievement of pre-determined goals. By defining objectives of development clearly,
there would be no wastage of time, money and effort.
ii) Optimum utilization of resources – Management utilizes all the physical and human
resources productively in the process of development. Management provides
maximum utilization of scarce resources by selecting its best possible alternate use.
iii) Reduces costs – It gets maximum results through minimum inputs by proper
planning of physical, human and financial resources in such a manner which results in
best combination to reduce costs.
iv) Establishes sound organization – It establishes effective authority and responsibility
relationship that is who is accountable to whom, who can give instructions to whom,
who are superiors and who are subordinates. Management fills up various positions
with right persons, having right skills, training and qualification.
v) Establishes equilibrium – It adapts organization to changing demand of people /
changing needs of society.
vi) Essentials for prosperity of society – Efficient management leads to better
economical production which helps in turn to increase the welfare of people. Good
management makes a difficult developmental task easier by avoiding wastage of
scarce resources.
• Legal and other requirements- Identify and ensure access to relevant laws and regulations,
as well as other requirements to which the organization adheres to.
• Objectives and targets - Establish environmental goals for the organization, in line with the
policy, environmental impacts, the views of interested parties, and other factors. Sustainable
• Training, awareness, and competence - Ensure that the employees are trained and capable of
carrying out their environmental responsibilities.
• Document control - Ensure effective management of procedures and other system documents.
• Operational control- Identify, plan, and manage the operations and activities in line with the
policy, objectives, and targets.
• Non conformance and corrective and preventive action - Identify and correct problems and
prevent their recurrence.
• Management review - Periodically review the EMS with an eye to continual improvement.
An organization has the freedom and flexibility to define the boundaries of its system
and may choose to implement an EMS throughout the entire organization, or within
specific operating units or activities of the organization. If it is implemented for a
specific operating unit or activity, policies and procedures developed by other parts of
the organization can be used to meet the requirements of an environmental
management system, provided that they are applicable to the specific operating unit
or activity that will be subject to the environmental management system. The level of
detail and complexity of the environmental management system, the extent of
documentation and resources dedicated to it will be dependent on the size of the
organization and the nature of its activities. This may be the case in particular for
small and medium-sized enterprises.
Integration of environmental matters with the overall management system can
contribute to the effective implementation of the environmental management system,
as well as to the efficiency and clarity of roles. In many aspects, the ISO 14001
standard shares common management system principles with the ISO 9000 series of
quality system standards. In the beginning of the ISO 14001 standard, it states that
“organizations may elect to use an existing management system consistent with the
ISO 9000 series as a basis for its environmental management system. It should be
understood, however, that the application of various elements of the management
system may differ due to different purposes and different interested parties. While
quality management systems deal with customer needs, environmental management
systems address the needs of a broad range of interested parties and the evolving
needs of society for environmental protection.”
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS IN
MUNICIPALITIES
Since its publication in 1996, the manufacturing industry has embraced the concept of
Environmental Management Systems. However the ISO standard was not designed specifically
for implementation in manufacturing, or even just for-profit businesses; it specifically uses the
word “organization” to imply any group of individuals that come together for a specific purpose
under a specific administrative structure. The benefits of the EMS approach – which will also be
discussed in this section – have led to its application in other locations, such as local
governments, with similar success. Several pilot studies have been commissioned at the
International, Federal and State levels to demonstrate this, and the evidence is clear that
municipalities can realize benefits at least equal to those achieved by business. Much like
businesses, municipal governments have a complex system of organizational management and
are subject to large number of regulatory requirements. However, unlike many businesses,
municipalities typically have a very wide scope of activities that encompass power generation,
water and wastewater treatment, solid waste collection and disposal, maintenance of the local
infrastructure, and enforcement of numerous federal, state and local codes. Further, many of
these operations interact directly with the environment and have a high potential for significant
impact if a problem occurs. For these reasons, an EMS may in fact be more useful for protecting
the environment in a municipal setting than in a business setting.
Examples from these case studies are included throughout this section to illustrate the benefits of
implementing an EMS as have been realized by Pennsylvania municipalities. Additionally,
success factors for implementation identified by pilot municipality participants are described.
ii) Benefits of a Municipal EMS
Multiple studies have been performed to examine the benefits of the EMS approach,
The evidence indicates that the systems approach to managing environmental issues
that is fundamental to an EMS causes a deep, cultural shift in how the organization
addresses these issues. Every employee must incorporate environmental
considerations into their daily job functions. Thus the documented benefits of
implementing an EMS range from improved compliance with environmental
regulations and often a reduction in fines to increased management efficiency and
even a reduction in waste production and energy consumption. The systematic EMS
approach to the daily management of energy and environmental objectives leads to
benefits that can only be created by an integrated effort across the entire organization,
and are typically difficult to foresee prior to the implementation of the EMS.
A particularly useful element of an EMS is the incorporation of stakeholder
requirements and external communications. Because municipalities are public entities
designed to serve local communities, the increased transparency and ability to
respond to the needs of the community typically improves relationships between the
municipality and its various stakeholders. The increased management and operational
efficiency gained with an EMS also improves the ability of the municipality to
provide its services to the community inexpensively and with greater effectiveness.
The Pennsylvania EMS Pilot Project Participants anticipate realizing many of the
benefits common to EMS implementation; however it is still relatively early to
predict whether long-term benefits, such as improved relationships with regulators
and regulatory compliance, will be achieved. Despite this, numerous benefits have
been noted by Pilot Project Participants, including:
• Capturing Institutional Knowledge;
• Streamlining Operations.
iii) Primary EMS Benefits for Municipalities
• Positive effect on environmental performance and compliance
• Improved EHS/ emergency response training, awareness, involvement and
competency
• Increased management and operational efficiency
• Improved relationships with regulators and the community
• Reduced waste production and energy consumption
• Process for inclusion of multiple stakeholder requirements • Increased transparency
and ability to respond to community requests for information
b) Streamlining Operations
In the most basic sense, ‘social sustainability’ implies a system of social organization that
alleviates poverty. In a more fundamental sense, however, ‘social sustainability’ establishes the
nexus between social conditions such as poverty and Ž . Environmental decay see Ruttan, 1991.
This theory of social organization identifies a negative linkage between sustained colonization,
sustained poverty levels, and sustained natural resource exploitation. There is a divergence of
opinion in development theory whether ‘environmental sustainability’ is a prerequisite of
economic growth and poverty alleviation, or economic growth and poverty alleviation are
needed before ‘environmental sustainability’ can even be addressed.
. The latter position was defended by the late Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, on the
grounds that very poor countries must accept temporary environmental degradation in order to
meet immediate needs of food and shelter before they can pursue permanent economic and
environmental improvements. Her view was that developing countries simply cannot afford to
put environmental protection before economic development. In contrast to this view, the theory
of ‘social sustainability’ posits that the alleviation of poverty need not entail environmental
decline. It aims to alleviate poverty within the existing resource base of a society
Bibliography
Responsible Care® is the chemical industry’s unique global initiative that drives continuous
improvement in environment, health, safety and security (EHS&S) performance, together with
open and transparent communication among stakeholders. Responsible Care embraces the
development and application of sustainable chemistry, which helps our industry contribute to
sustainable development while allowing us to meet the world’s growing need for essential
chemicals and chemical products. Launched in 1985 by the Canadian Chemical Producers’
Association and currently practiced in 58 chemical associations in more than 60 countries around
the globe, this dynamic initiative is constantly evolving to meet the challenges faced by chemical
manufacturers throughout the value chain. The Responsible Care Global Charter was launched in
2006 to strengthen the industry’s commitment to the initiative, focusing on the roles,
responsibilities and accountabilities of global chemical companies in support of Responsible
Care. Company CEOs signing the Charter are expected to implement Responsible Care in their
organizations and implement efforts worldwide. Within the Arabian Gulf Region, the Gulf
Petrochemical and Chemicals Association (GPCA) is accountable for ensuring that its members
implement Responsible Care, which includes fostering capacity building, the sharing of
Environment, Health, Safety and Security (EHS&S) information and employing an increasingly
rigorous system of Codes of Management Practices, performance indicators and verification
procedures. Additionally, Responsible Care outreach spans a vast range of activities from
cooperative performance-based initiatives with government agencies to local community projects
such as the development of wildlife habitats in addition to tailored programs for students and
teachers. Responsible Care has become a requirement for GPCA membership. It is an ongoing
program that provides a checklist of activities for member companies to implement. This list is
updated periodically in light of new information, new technology, new expectations, and a
constant reassessment of performance and objectives. Responsible Care is a way of doing
business. Responsible Care fostered the development of the ICCA Global Product Strategy
(GPS), which seeks to improve chemicals management, including risk assessment and
management throughout the supply chain. Responsible Care helps the chemical industry to report
and track progress on critical elements of chemicals management.
Responsible Care Global Charter
• Implement Responsible Care principles and practices wherever the company manufactures
or sells products; • Participate in national Responsible Care programs where the company has
significant business activities;
• Contribute to the further expansion of Responsible Care in regions where the company has
significant business activities;
• Provide practical support and share best practices to enable other parties to successfully
implement Responsible Care.
1. Compliance Assurance
GPCA member companies have voluntarily embarked on achieving the internationally
renowned RC14001 certification. RC14001 extends the environmental requirements of
ISO14001 to include health, safety and security and other Responsible Care® requirements,
in addition to ensuring that member companies are legally compliant with EHS&S
regulations.
2. Return on Investment
Implementation of Responsible Care practices can yield many business benefits, such as
energy efficiency, reduced emissions, improved waste management, fewer incidents, more
secure facilities and operations, which contribute to lower operating costs.
3. Risk and Liability Reduction The Responsible Care Codes of Management Practice
facilitate the identification and management of EHS&S risks and liabilities in a proactive
and sustainable manner. GPCA has established a platform for sharing best practice and
lessons learned.
4. Improved Community Relations
Responsible Care requires companies to communicate openly on their performance and
products. The Community Awareness and Emergency Response Code encourages the
sharing of resources and EHS&S information in particular with regards to emergency
support, thus benefitting the broader community.
1. Competitive Advantage
Responsible Care certified companies have a competitive advantage as they have
demonstrated excellence in environmental, health, safety, security, product stewardship,
and value chain performance, combined with robust community outreach.
2. Customer Expectations
Reliable management systems are increasingly in demand by a company’s customer
network, and are common in today’s global markets place. Responsible Care certification
incorporates GPCA specific requirements and provides customers with the assurance that
a company has met these expectations throughout the supply chain.
GPCA RC Companies:
Chief Executive Officer
Commitment to the Responsible Care initiative begins at the top level of an organization.
The CEO’s commitment to the Global Charter must be apparent through active
involvement and visible demonstrations of support. GPCA member company CEOs
should ensure that the principles of Responsible Care are embedded in operational
activities and considered in strategic developments.
Company Responsible Care Coordinator
Every company is expected to appoint a Responsible Care coordinator .The role is a
pivotal in the successful implementation of Responsible Care. The coordinator, with full
support from the CEO, is the central point of contact within the company on all matters
related to Responsible Care. The Responsible Care coordinator directs planning and
implementation of Responsible Care, throughout the organizational functions, in a way
that makes the most business sense and provides the greatest benefits to the organization.
Company Employees
Every employee has a role to play in planning and implementing Responsible Care
within their company. Responsible Care serves as a unifying force, bringing an
organization together around common principles and operating guidelines. Employees
can proactively adopt the Codes of Management Practice requirements and advocate the
practices and leanings.
GPCA Responsible Care Committee:
The Responsible Care Committee comprises of senior EHS&S executives from GPCA
member companies. Its purpose is to provide strategic EHS&S direction for the regional
petrochemical and chemical industry in terms of thought leadership, networking and
advocacy. In particular it is geared to:
• Creating sub-committees and task forces to develop plans and industry positions on key
regional EHS&S topics.
• Developing and fostering relationships among GPCA members that have an interest in
EHS&S and Responsible Care issues.
• Compiling, sharing and exchanging resources, knowledge, opinions and experience on
EHS&S and Responsible Care issues among GPCA members.
• Developing links between GPCA and regional and international government authorities
and communities with an interest in EHS&S issues.
• Sharing and promoting EHS&S best practices in industries through workshops,
seminars, conferences, and general networking among GPCA members.
• Developing plans for workshops and training programs to address the needs of the Gulf
petrochemical and chemical industries.
Measuring RC Performance
A key element of the Responsible Care® program is the transparent reporting of
EHS&S performance data, to help facilitate a culture of continuous EHS&S
improvement as an essential element of a company’s and the region’s sustainability.
Since 2010 GPCA has collected, aggregated and analyzed EHS&S metrics data,
following international reporting standards from its full member companies. Data
and related success stories are published annually in a Performance Metrics report,
and more recently in the GPCA Sustainability Report. Companies have the
opportunity to use this data to benchmark their EHS&S performance against other
Responsible Care companies.
Reporting Metrics FAQ’s:
The metrics are reported by recording the Performance Metrics Performa and
sending it to the GPCA RC Officer.
Annually
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Commitment to Sustainability
Responsible Care® is the chemical industry’s commitment to sustainability. It
addresses the environmental aspects and has a significant coverage of the social
element. The contribution that the GPCA Responsible Care program is making to the
industry’s sustainability effort in the Arabian Gulf Region will continue to be
significant.
Future efforts under Responsible Care will focus on improving resource use, the
lifecycle of products through final disposal, and driving continuous improvement of
all EHS&S performance indicators. Education of the local workforce will be an
important factor in the ongoing development of downstream activities to help sustain
the GCC chemical industry.
GPCA and its member companies will contribute to focus collective efforts in order
to:
1. Enhance the environmental and safe handling aspects of chemicals throughout
their life cycle
2. Provide a safer and healthier work environment
3. Improve sustainability of key suppliers and distributors
4. Educate, engage and lead their organizations to actively drive progress in
environmental and social responsibility
5. Improve the regional environmental footprint
6. Work in cooperation with government and industry stakeholders towards
achieving the ICCA sustainability initiatives, the principles of United Nations Global
Compact and with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals
7. Improve business practices leading to reduced risk and enhanced reputation