Compliance Officer Portal - Environmental
Compliance
Environmental compliance: The
next Sarbanes-Oxley? (news.cnet.com, from Chris Smith, chief
executive of RiverOne)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------European
UnionThere are
a number of areas of EU environmental legislation relevant to SMEs:
Air quality,
emissions trading and noise
Chemicals (REACH)
Energy
Environmental
management (EMAS, Life Cycle Assessment, CSR)
To learn more: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/sme/legislation/legislation_en.htm
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EPA (the US Environmental Protection Agency) employs 17,000 people
across the country. EPA is led by the Administrator, who is
appointed by the President of the United States.
Compliance and Enforcement is an integral part of environmental
protection. Compliance with the nation's environmental laws is the
ultimate objective, but enforcement is a vital part of encouraging
governments, businesses and other companies who are regulated to
meet their environmental obligations.
EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA)
pursues enforcement and provides compliance assistance to areas
that yield the most environmental benefit or reduce risk to human
health.
Enforcement and compliance actions are organized around
environmental problems and broad patterns of non-compliance rather
than provisions of single statutes.
Government Training
National Enforcement Training Institute
The mission of the EPA National Enforcement Training Institute (NETI)
is to support the national environmental enforcement and
compliance program by:
Identifying strategic education and training needs that reflect
priorities and address important gaps in knowledge and skills of
those engaged in assuring compliance with federal environmental
laws
Ensuring that needed education and training is identified and
available through consulting and designing, developing, teaching
and/or facilitating quality courses and materials offered through
a wide variety of delivery mechanisms designed to build and
maintain competency and professionalism for compliance and
enforcement professionals
Covering the full spectrum of the primary tools to promote
compliance, including compliance monitoring, compliance
assistance, compliance incentives, and civil and criminal
enforcement
Being accountable for the quality and effectiveness of NETI
training and of NETI leadership in continuous professional
education through the use of performance measures and results
Promoting education opportunities, resources and a culture of
continuous learning among environmental compliance professionals
in federal, state, tribal and local governmentTo learn more:
www.epa.gov/compliance/training
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