Assessing Your Environmental Programs

Assessing Your Environmental Programs 
Terrence J. McManus – Intel Corporation (SSA Journal Volume 10 Number 1 – Spring 1996 pp. 18 – 26 )

As the field of environmental management continues to expand and new regulations come on line, programs are developed to respond to these new requirements and to provide mechanisms for continuous improvement. Many of these programs are established within an overall corporate framework and then tailored to meet the specific needs of a factory or site. As additional requirements are added within a specific environmental program through regulatory changes or people move to other job assignments, there is always a possibility that the programs are not complying with current environmental regulations or meeting, in the most efficient manner, the needs of the corporation. Therefore, inspection programs, also known as audits, are implemented to evaluate the viability and effectiveness of environmental programs. This paper discusses a multi-faceted environmental assessment system that has been implemented at Intel Corporation. It includes a corporate inspection program that evaluates the areas of Compliance, Management Systems, Business Risk, and Environmental Excellence. It also includes site, or factory-based programs, consisting of compliance checklists and environmental management by walking around. Each of these programs will be discussed and the benefits that are achieved through their implementation will be presented.