Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
rms' environmental
performance has been a subject of much debate in recent years. Early on, the standards
were critiqued on the grounds that they were management standards rather than product
or performance standards (Krut and Gleckman, 1998). Further, some have pointed out
that while the ISO is an international organization, it is dominated by industry actors that
would have the incentive to set standards that were easy to meet. While these standards
have become a
de facto
prerequisite for doing international business, questions have also
been raised regarding their e
Whether the ISO 14000 standards have made improvements in
fi
ff
ectiveness in terms of improving environmental perfor-
mance of
rms, particularly those operating in developing countries (Clapp, 1998).
Recent research, however, indicates that in the USA adherence to ISO 14001 resulted
overall in lower toxic emissions and higher rates of regulatory compliance, particularly
for
fi
rms with environmental performance in the middle range (Prakash and Potoski,
2006).
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Industry-specific codes of conduct and certification schemes
A range of
industry-wide codes of
conduct and product certi
fi
cation schemes has
emerged over the past decade with the aim of enhancing
rms' social and environmental
performance (Cashore, 2002). Most of these schemes are speci
fi
c to a particular industry
or product, typically one with a high environmental impact. Some of these schemes are
controlled entirely within the industry to which it is geared, or have involvement of non-
governmental organizations or other non-state actors as independent input and over-
sight providers. As a result, private standards such as these have a wide diversity in terms
of the role of independent actors as standard-setters, and in monitoring and enforcement
mechanisms.
Industry-wide standards for production and management include, for example, pro-
grams such as Responsible Care, a set of principles for environmental, health and safety
practices that are voluntary (although some national chemical associations require
members to sign on to the principles). These standards are set by the International
Council for Chemical Associations, an industry group (see Prakash, 2000). In the mining
sector, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) established Principles
of Sustainable Development in 2003 (http://www.icmm.com/icmm_principles.php). All
members of the ICMM are asked to commit to these principles, although there is no inde-
pendent monitoring and enforcement of this commitment. In 2005, however, the ICMM
asked members to act in accordance with GRI reporting standards (highest level), and the
GRI and ICMM have collaborated to develop a mining sector supplement for sustain-
ability reporting. An industry-wide set of principles also exists in the forestry sector, as
promoted by the Forest Stewardship Council. The FSC has membership that includes not
just industry players, but also NGOs and other stakeholders, which some say give its prin-
ciples more teeth and a more objective ability to monitor and enforce the standards
(Cashore, 2002; Pattberg, 2005).
In addition to standards and principles that guide the general practices within a speci
fi
fi
c
industry, there is also a growing number of certi
fi
able standards and requirements speci
fi
c
to particular products within an industry. Certi
cations are usually established for prod-
ucts that are seen to be environmentally friendly, such as fair trade and organic foods
(Raynolds, 2000), sustainable forest products (Cashore, 2002), and increasingly retail
food items, particularly fresh produce that is grown using 'good agricultural practices'
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