Environmental policy
Plain-language summary
A short, signed statement of your environmental intent — including commitments to protect the environment, meet your obligations and keep improving — that genuinely guides the business.
What the clause is really asking
The policy is your public promise and the anchor for objectives. It must fit your context and purpose, commit to protecting the environment (including pollution prevention), commit to meeting compliance obligations, and commit to continual improvement of the EMS. The intent is a framework that actually sets direction, not a wall poster of green platitudes disconnected from how you operate.
What auditors look for
Auditors check the three required commitments are present and then test whether the policy is real: do staff know what it means for their job, are objectives traceable to it, is it available to interested parties. They sample employees for awareness at the right level and look for the policy to be maintained as documented information and signed off by top management.
Typical evidence
Signed, dated environmental policy; evidence of communication (induction, displays, intranet); objectives linked back to policy commitments; availability to interested parties.
How to comply — recommendations
Keep it to one page with the three commitments clearly stated and tailored to your real impacts — water, waste, energy, emissions. Have top management sign and date it. Brief staff on what it means practically, not just that it exists. Make sure your objectives obviously trace back to its commitments, and make it available to anyone who asks.
Common nonconformities
Missing one of the three required commitments; generic policy with no link to actual impacts; staff unaware of its meaning; not signed, dated or made available to interested parties.
Related clauses
ISO 9001 5.2; ISO 45001 5.2
Qlause provides interpretive guidance only and is not a substitute for the standard. Refer to your licensed copy of the relevant standard for the authoritative text.