Objectives of Environmental Audit

The Environmental Audit helps in

pollution control;
improved production;
safety, health and
conservation of natural resources.
Overall

objectives

stated

sustainable development.

as

achievement

of

Objectives of the Environmental

audit
To

determine

the

mass

balance

of

various

materials used
The performance of different process equipments
so as to identify usage of materials used in excess,
To review the conversion efficiencies of process
equipment and
Accordingly fix up norms for equipment/operation
performance and minimization of the wastes.

2. (a) To identify the areas of water usage, used

waste

water,

characteristics

and
of

waste

determine

the

water.

To

(b)

determine the emissions, and their sources,

quantities and characteristics.
(c) To determine the solid wastes
and hazardous wastes generated by their
sources, quantities and characteristics.

 To determine the performance of the existing waste

treatment/control systems so as to modify or install
additional or alternative control equipment.
To

determine

the

impact

on

the

surrounding

environment like groundwater, stream, residential area,

and agricultural area due to the disposal of waste water
emissions and
Solid wastes from the industry and accordingly identify
suitable preventive measures, if necessary.

 To verify compliance with the standards and conditions

prescribed by the regulatory bodies under the Water Act, the
Air Act and the Environmental (Protection) Act and the
Hazardous Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules.
To check the effectiveness of

(a)

Organizational set up of the industry for decision-making

and environmental management with special reference to
their

technical

training, and
company.

view-point,

attitudinal

viewpoint

and

(b) Environmental policy of the

Advantages of Environmental Audit

The primary and obvious advantage of environmental
auditing is to help safeguard the environment and to assist
the local, regional and national laws and regulations and
with company policy and standards.
The benefits of the environmental audit are :
(a) Determines how well the process
systems and pollution control systems are performing and
identify the operations of poor performance.

(b) Identifies potential cost savings which can be accrued

through reduction in raw material consumption by way of
waste

minimization,

and

adoption

of

recycle/recovery/reduction in pollution load.

(c) Increases awareness of environmental requirements,
policies and responsibilities.
(d) Helps in understanding the technical capabilities
and

attitude

company.

of

the

environmental

organization

in

(e) Provides up-to-date environmental

database

for

emergencies,
Unravels
which

use

in

and

other

surpluses

can

plant

and

reduce

modification,

situations.
hidden

regulatory

exposures to litigation.

(f)

liabilities
risk

and
(g)

Ensures independent verification, identifies

matters

needing

attention

and

provides

timely warning to management on potential

(h) Helps to safeguard environment and assists in complying

with local, regional and national laws and regulations without
compromising on the companys policy and the environment
standards.
(i) Helps to improve public image.
(j) Increases information transfer.
(k) Better efficiency, cost reduction, waste
minimization, better end-of-pipe treatment.

Types of Environmental Audit

The following are various types of environmental
audits practiced
(a) Waste audit

(b) Energy audit

(c) Health and safety audit

(d) Compliance audit
(e) Management audit
minimization audit
Liabilities definition audit
(h) Property transfer audit

(f) Waste
(g)

Waste Audit
In a waste audit, quantities and types of
wastes generated from different sources are
identified

and

the

optimum

minimize

the

quantities

of

methods
wastes

to
are

evolved.

Waste audit is a technical tool meant for

waste reduction from all the possible sources.

Waste Audit
In an energy audit the quantities and types of fuels
consumed at different stages are identified and means to
minimize consumption to eliminate the losses of fuels are
suggested. A good waste audit would

1) Define sources, quantities and types of waste generated.

2) Collate information on unit operations, raw materials, products,
water usage and wastes.
3) Highlight process inefficiencies and areas of poor management

4. Cause awareness in the work force regarding

benefits due to waste reduction.
5. Permit the development
of cost effective waste management strategies.
6. Increase the
knowledge of the process.
Help set targets for waste reduction.
8. Help to improve process efficiency.

7.

9. Improve operation and maintenance of pollution control

equipment.
Audit report for each unit should include.
1.
Emission to air, water and land.
2. Waste management.
3. Noise and other nuisance.
4. Safety.
5. Energy, water and raw materials.
6. Products.

 Energy audit should identify, quantify avoidable

losses and suggest means to minimize or eliminate

avoidable loss. Benefits of energy audit and
conservation include.

(a) Save money

(b) Minimize operating cost

(c) More profits or less losses
(d) Conserve valuable energy sources
(e) Partly reduces environmental problems

 Following equipment are major consumers of

energy

(a) Boiler
(b) Steam system
(c) Furnaces

(d) Kilns

 Following steps lead to minimization of energy use in furnaces

(a) Optimum
loading of furnaces

(b) Better

temperature controls

(c)

Flue gas analysis (1) Excess air (2) Combustibles or CO (3)

Periodic check up (4) Optimizing air
(d) Reduction of losses through refractory linings and
door openings
(f) Insulation

(e) Waste heat recovery

 Following steps lead to energy saving in boilers.

(a) Operation
of baler at optimism pressure .
Fuel gas analysis.

(b)
(c) Use of waste

heat recovery systems.

(d) Optimum boiler blow down.

Steam saving can be achieved by studying:

(a) How much steam is normally used.
(b) How steam use is controlled.
(c) Can steam be partially or fully be substituted
by waste hold.

Stages of Environmental Audit

There are three stages of environmental audit :
(1) Audit program planning (including pre-visit data
collection)
(2) On-site activities
(3) Evaluation of audit data and reporting of findings.

Program Planning
Planning would include:
obtaining commitment by management,
defining the objectives and requirements, and
developing an information management system.
It is also important to organize the audit team and
make sure that the program has the resources and tools necessary
to address the issues that need to be investigated.
One must consider the legal measures which may be appropriate
to protect the results of the program.
In summary, the auditing program must be tailored to meet the
needs of the facility being audited.

Commitment by Management
Two important commitment are necessary:
(1) The management must provide the program with

the required resources and if necessary, direct plant

personnel to provide access and to cooperate with
the auditors during the process.
(2) It is critical that management articulate and explicit

written commitment to follow-up an audit finding

and correct the problems that the audit will uncover.

Definition of Requirements
The process of performing an audit begins by
deciding what type of audit is needed.
After selecting the needed type of audit, the
auditor must define the scope of the audit,
whether all the areas of environmental
management are to be covered or only one
specific part.
After selecting the type of audit and its scope,
other decisions need to be made.

How will successful performance be measured over

time? How frequently will the audits be done?
How will the results be reported?
Each of these is important to
evaluate prior to designing the actual audit process.
Defining
these objectives in the beginning makes a major
difference regarding the types of resources and
techniques needed to conduct the actual audit.

Confidentially
It may be appropriate to conduct an audit under legal
arrangements to protect confidentially.
It is important to plan this carefully because such
legal protections may withstands challenge only if
they are built into the auditing process.
Why

should

one

consider

holding

an

audit

confidential? Because the audit report may describe

proprietary business information.

Organization of auditing program

After the objectives are defined for the audit

program, the next step is to organize the program.

These are the important questions
to be answered: What is the frequency of re-audits,
if any? How to schedule an audit of multiple sites?
Will

the

audit

program

be

conducted

by

environmental consultants? Or will it be done by the

corporate staff as a part of their normal jobs?

Team of auditing specialists

Conducting a successful audit requires a team effort, directed by a
team leader and supported by auditor specialists. This selection of the
team has a major influence on the success of the audit.
The size and makeup of the team depend on the size of the facility
and the complexity of the issues that must be addressed.
Auditors need to be expert in federal and state environmental
regulations and sometimes local and country regulations.
Auditors need to have knowledge of waste treatment and

pollution

control technology. The team needs to have a variety of scientific

disciplines.

 They

need

knowledge

of

information

management systems and general management

techniques for organizing staff and programs.
The team members should have sensitivity with
the

ability

to

communicate

accurately

and

appropriately with different levels of personnel.

Pre-visit data collection

An audit usually requires facility staff to complete and
return a pre-visit questionnaire that familiarizes the audit
team with operations of the facility, its regulatory
standing, and the environmental setting.
It is essential to receive a completed
pre-visit questionnaire before finalizing the audit team.
Pre-visit questionnaire have the following
information:

1. A management chart showing key

personnel, and their line and staff responsibilities.

 2. A site layout showing the location of various

operations, particularly the key items, which should be
examined (e.g., waste storage areas, sewer locations
and drainage systems, underground storage tanks and
ground water monitoring wells).

3.

A brief description and block diagram of operating

processes and any pollution control units, showing
recent and planned modifications.

4. A list of all major types of waste generated and how each

is managed.

5. A

list of all environmental regulatory permits of the site, with

copies.
6. All major environmental plans and policy manuals.
7. Information about non-compliance
history of any sort. This is particularly useful because it
allows the auditor to concentrate on areas that have
attracted regulatory attention and are likely to receive close
regulatory scrutiny in the future.

KEY QUESTIONS(NON-HAZARDOUS
WASTE)
What pollution control equipment is used at the plant?
Have you been inspected by any regulatory agency
last year?
Have you been cited for non-compliance last year?
What is the acreage of the facility?
How long has the facility been in operation?
What was the past use of the site?

KEY QUESTIONS (HAZARDOUS

MATERIALS)
What is the latest hazardous materials
inventory?
What quantity of petroleum products is
stored on the site?
Do any underground tanks exist on the
site?
Where the wastewater discharge locations?

Ground waters & Air Quality

Does this plant have any required
ground water monitoring program?
What air permits does
this plant have? For what operations?

ONSITE ACTIVITIES
The primary purpose of the visit is to review
documents maintained at the facility, to interview
facility employees, and to inspect thoroughly all
relevant operations conducted at the facility.
The following activities are includes at
the site:

1. Deriving material

balance

2. Identifying waste flow

lines
characteristics

3. Monitoring of

4. Evaluation of the performance of process

and pollution control equipments/system.
5. Assessing environmental
quality.

6. Holding

discussions with the management and finally

preparing the draft report.