An Environmental Management System (EMS) is a set of processes and practices that enable an organization to reduce its environmental impacts and increase its operating efficiency. An EMS establishes a management framework by which an organization’s impacts on the environment can be systematically identified and reduced. The concept of EMS is important due to the following reasons:

The sustainability aspects relate to

1. Serves as a tool to improve environmental performance
2. Provides a systematic way of managing an organization’s environmental affairs
3. Is the aspect of the organization’s overall management structure that addresses immediate and long-term impacts of its products, services and processes on the environment
4. Gives order and consistency for organizations to address environmental concerns through the allocation of resources, assignment of responsibility and ongoing evaluation of practices, procedures and processes
5. Focuses on continual improvement of the system

1. Policy Statement - a statement of the organization’s commitment to the environment
2. Identification of Significant Environmental Impacts - environmental attributes of products, activities and services and their effects on the environment
3. Development of Objectives and Targets - environmental goals for the organization
4. Implementation - plans to meet objectives and targets
5. Training - ensure that employees are aware and capable of their environmental responsibilities
6. Management Review

Over the last five years, "establishing an EMS" has become one of the basic steps in improving environmental performance. At its most basic, an EMS is a set of internal policies and procedures that help your organization systematically assess and reduce the environmental impact of its activities. The best known EMS is the ISO 14001 standard, which provides a commonly accepted guideline for the design of a comprehensive environmental management system. Establishing an EMS has become standard practice for most major companies, and the number who choose to obtain ISO 14001 certification has continued to grow steadily.

The main purpose of an EMS is to help an organization control its environmental risks and improve its environmental performance, but it is also becoming an important factor in terms of overall corporate image and competitiveness in the marketplace. Most companies find that establishing an EMS helps them save money by identifying opportunities to prevent pollution and improve resource efficiency. Certification to an international standard such as ISO 14001 or EMAS can also help improve a company's image, and is becoming increasingly important as a competitive factor in the marketplace. Large companies, particularly multinationals, are increasingly requiring that their suppliers implement an EMS as a pre-condition to developing a business relationship, and some prominent companies have begun to require that major suppliers obtain ISO 14001 certification.

However, simply establishing an EMS does not guarantee better performance. An EMS is a tool that only functions if an organization puts time and effort into its implementation. Developing policies and procedures to track environmental impacts does not help if nobody in a company's facility follows the system. Similarly, ISO 14001 certification does not prove that a company's environmental performance is good; ISO 14001 certification merely shows that the company has a set of policies and procedures in place to address environmental concerns. Making improvements and finding cost-saving opportunities requires allocating staff and resources to EMS implementation. However, most companies have found the process to be rewarding enough to merit support.

The policies and procedures of EMS systems are typically designed around on the concept of the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, meaning that you: 1) assess current environmental impacts and set objectives and targets for improvement (plan); 2) implement your plan for improvement as well as any necessary supporting measures such as defining internal responsibilities, training staff, etc. (do); 3) Monitor your progress and take corrective actions if your EMS isn't working properly (check); 4) Review your progress, audit your EMS to ensure that it is working properly, redefine your objectives and targets, and start the next cycle of PDCA.