ANNOUNCEMENTS
Urbanization is a defining trend of the 21st century, with over half of the world’s population now living in cities. While cities are often seen as engines of economic growth and innovation, they also face significant environmental challenges. Rapid urbanization has led to increased pollution, resource depletion, and waste generation, posing serious threats to environmental quality and public health. Addressing these challenges requires concerted efforts from all sectors of society, including businesses, governments, and communities.
Audits of environmental health and Safety (EHS) are methodical, unbiased assessments of how well an organisation complies with environmental laws, rules, and internal guidelines. These audits evaluate a number of operational components of an organisation, including as adherence to risk management procedures, environmental rules, resource efficiency, pollution control measures, and occupational health and safety requirements. Finding areas for improvement, ensuring regulatory compliance, and advancing sustainable business practices are the main goals of EHS audits. (Helfrich, J., Edwards, S., & Goode, H. (2018).
EHS audits usually entail a thorough examination of the procedures, resources, and practices of a company. This include reviewing records, visiting the location, speaking with staff members, and assessing how well the current environmental and safety management systems are working. Actionable recommendations for improving environmental performance and guaranteeing worker safety are developed using the results of an EHS audit.
Over the past few decades, the idea of EHS audits has undergone tremendous change. The main goal of EHS audits at first was to ensure that regulations were being followed. However, the scope of EHS audits has increased as a result of the increasing awareness of the wider effects that corporate operations have on society and the environment. These days, a broad range of environmental and safety concerns are covered by modern EHS audits, such as resource efficiency, waste management, pollution control, and sustainability programmes. (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2018)
Stricter environmental laws, greater public knowledge of environmental issues, and an increasing focus on corporate social responsibility have all contributed to the emergence of EHS audits. Because of this, businesses are using EHS audits as a strategic tool more often to improve their environmental performance, lower risks, and show their dedication to sustainability.
