FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 1999-08-05

Accreditation Boosts Confidence in ISO 14000 Audits and Registrations

There's one more rung on the ladder of confidence that supports the credibility of ISO 14000 environmental management systems (EMS). The Standards Council of Canada has announced the accreditation of the Canadian Environmental Auditing Association (CEAA) as a certification organization for EMS auditors and lead auditors.

Auditors assess an organization's EMS as part of the procedure for registering its compliance to the requirements of ISO 14001, the international EMS standard. Certification organizations such as CEAA verify the experience and credentials of EMS auditors and lead auditors. Accreditation bodies such as the Standards Council verify in turn that these certification programs operate in compliance with ISO 14012, an internationally recognized set of guidelines for auditor qualifications.

The Standards Council's accreditation criteria for EMS registrars require their EMS auditors and lead auditors to be certified by an accredited or recognized certification organization. CEAA is the first such organization to be accredited by the Standards Council.

The Standards Council has also accredited six EMS registration organizations and operates an accreditation program for EMS auditor training course providers.

The Standards Council of Canada is the federal Crown corporation that oversees the National Standards System. It accredits organizations that provide a variety of standards and conformity assessment services and represents Canada in international standards forums. For more information, visit the Standards Council Web site at http://www.scc.ca.

The Canadian Environmental Auditing Association (CEAA) is a non-profit association dedicated to furthering the development and professional practice of environmental auditing. For more information, visit the CEAA Web site at http://www.ceaa-acve.ca.

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