The ISO14000 series of standards are the specifications for Environmental Management, internationally recognised, developed by ISO committees (International Organisation for Standardisation). They are the benchmark of environmental quality for managing business in the global marketplace to support enterprises.
The ISO 14001 "Specifications for the Environmental Management System" is the heart of the ISO14000 series of standards. It lists the aspects of the activities that have an impact on the environment and includes environmental laws specific to various industrial sectors on the basis of which a company will be assessed for environmental certification. Once having singled out the activities, the next step envisions the definition of improvement objectives and a management program to achieve them, with reviews at regular intervals to ensure continuous improvement.
The Environmental Management System developed by ISO 14001 is intended to provide all "organisations" (of any type and size) the "foundations of an effective environmental management, which, integrated with other management requirements, help organisations to achieve their environmental and economic objectives".
ISO 14001 does not require special technology, and does not oblige the company to respect particular restrictions