Environmental management systems
ISO14001:2004
Clause 4.4.3 of ISO14001:2004 specifies that the organisation must have procedures for
‘receiving, documenting and responding to relevant communication from external interested parties’.
This implies that communicating with neighbours is regarded as a reactive process. Even so, it is acknowledged that communicating with neighbours is vital to an EMS and to the credibility of the organisation regarding environmental issues.
Any communication must be formally recorded, including the outcomes and actions arising from that communication.
If a complaint from a neighbour is found to be justified, then action must be taken to rectify the problem. ISO14001:2004 does not specify that communication includes informing the complainant of the actions taken, but a written record must be kept in the EMS.
EMAS
Remember, EMAS requires an organisation to have a written EMS such as ISO14001:2004, which will include reference to communicating with neighbours.
Good practice in relations with your neighbours
The most likely reason for neighbours to want to contact a production or manufacturing site is to complain about some nuisance or environmental problem
(see emissions overview).
However, there are other reasons for communication from your local community. For example, students engaged in project work on the environment often contact companies to request information about environmental issues. Complying with such requests provides a way of getting a positive environmental message out into the community.
More proactive methods of communicating with the local community may be appropriate in certain circumstances (e.g. a company sent out mail-shots to the local community to inform them that they had achieved certification to EMAS).
One of the drawbacks of using this method is that mail shots are perceived by the public as being wasteful of resources and, therefore, environmentally unfriendly. This could detract from the environmentally positive image which the sender is trying to project. Some choose to issue a carefully drafted press release to the local media inviting positive engagement.