An Introduction to Environmental Management Systems (EMS) in agriculture

<< EMS in Victorian Agriculture

What is an EMS? How is EMS different to Quality Assurance (QA)? What does an EMS look like? Steps involved.. Benefits of adopting EMS EMS Brochure for download What is an EMS? EMS is a simply structured approach to help farmers assess and improve their environmental performance on their own farms. The business (farm) identifies environmental impacts and legal responsibilities, then implements and reviews changes and improvements in a structured way. An EMS is a management tool that helps to achieve continuous improvement through a "plan, do, check, improve" cycle that can include best management practices and Codes of Practice. It may be readily integrated with other existing activities such as quality assurance (QA) schemes and can help draw diverse management issues together under a common approach. An EMS can be self-audited (1st party audit) or externally audited (2nd or 3rd party audit) and may be certified to the international ISO 14001 standard or to specific customer and/or industry requirements.

How is an EMS different to Quality Assurance (QA)?

EMS differs from QA in that it focuses on the environmental impacts of production which is the ‘green’ part, whereas Quality Assurance (QA) focuses on food safety and quality of the end product - the ‘clean’ part. EMS can be used for marketing purposes and better environmental performance. So how do we achieve 'green' performance in agriculture? It basically comes down to having farming systems which have minimal off-site impacts. Off-site impacts are unintended negative consequences which affect someone else; for example another farmer or future generations, or a threatened ecosystem or species. To have minimal off-site impacts, farming systems need to achieve:

1. Minimal leakage of water and nutrients (through to groundwater)
2. Negligible erosion: wind or water
3. No persistent toxicities: acidity, heavy metals, agrochemicals
4. Control of pests, diseases and weeds
5. No loss of biodiversity in surrounding areas

Many leading enterprises have erosion, acidity and pests under control, but issues of water and nutrient leakage and biodiversity are often not addressed in current farming systems.

What does an EMS look like? The steps involved EMS can be illustrated as a learning cycle where the main components are linked. EMS can also be described as a "plan-do-check-review cycle". The EMS process is flexible and can be audited at a number of levels, you don't have to be involved in the entire process.

The main components of an EMS are:

Step	EMS component	Steps involved
1 PLAN	Self - Assessment (environmental review)	Current environmental performance in each farm management area (eg. soil, water, remnant vegetation, waste management) is assessed, giving the farmer an idea of what they are currently doing well and areas for improvement.
2	Develop an environmental vision & policy	A policy is a guiding set of principles - it details the farm's vision and a statement of commitment. It should be made publicly available.
3	Set goals & objectives and develop priorities	Goals are what the farm wants to achieve in terms of environmental protection and enhancement. A realistic number to have is less than 10. Objectives detail how the goals will be achieved - they contain the 'what', 'why', 'when' and 'where' details.
4	Develop an action plan	Clearly specified tasks are set out with time frames. A list of materials needed and person responsible is also part of the action plan.
5 DO	Implement your action plan	The actions listed in the plan are carried out. Communication is a critical part of implementation, as is ensuring that staff have the correct training to carry out actions.
6 CHECK	Monitor and measure	A monitoring program needs to be put in place. Many EMS guides have developed monitoring tools to assist farmers with this. Keeping appropriate records is vital (eg. chemical records, procedures, soil test results etc). It is envisaged that environmental paddock record keeping will be eventually incorporated into existing computer packages and paper-based systems. The farmer can use paper-based or software to keep records. There should be a document control system in place, as simple as a register of where all the records can be found and how long they should be retained.
7 REVIEW	Review and improve the plan	This step involves reviewing the action plan: what worked and what didn't? What was unrealistic? Are there any new issues which need to be addressed? An EMS is flexible, the action plan can be adapted if priorities change.
8	Self audit or external audit	Self-audits of the EMS show if the required management actions are occurring and where improvements can be made. Once EMS is running, you might eventually choose to undergo a third-party certification audit to have your claims of environmental responsibility independently assessed. This can be compliant with ISO 14001, the internationally accepted standard.

Benefits of adopting EMS

There are a number of benefits arising from EMS that could also act as drivers for its adoption, including:

better understanding of the environment, possibility for improved marketing (some industries more than others), improved management skills, improved productivity through better management, much better understanding of the environmental impacts of agriculture, appreciation of your own management strengths and weaknesses, camaraderie and development of friendships within the participating group, improved communication within the farming partnership, better record keeping and ‘paperwork’ skills leading to an improved business plan, especially after completing the environmental review, improved computer skills and increased understanding of how to monitor your farm's environmental performance

DPI Environmental Management Systems Brochure: (PDF 194kb) To view the attached PDF document you will need a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader. A free copy can be downloaded from the Adobe Acrobat Website