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This paper evaluated the effectiveness of the planning and implementation stages of the ISO 14001 Standards Environmental Management System (EMS) at the Obuasi gold mine in Ghana. The purpose was to identify growth factors, challenges and opportunities for improving process efficiencies through ISO 14001 Standards EMS implementation. A modified ISO...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... coming into force of environmental legislations in Ghana might have compelled or perhaps motivated major mining companies such as the Obuasi gold mine ( Fig. 1), to opt for the ISO 14001 Standards Environmental Management System (EMS). ISO14001 is a process standard designed to articulate the characteristics of the components of a management system; and also requires that, organisations formulate an environmental policy for planning, implementing, monitoring and measurement, for effectiveness ...
Context 2
... observations (45%) of the supply chain business units had increased percentage changes in audit observations, while two (2) out of seven (7), constituting about 29% had percentage increase at the company's business units. Twelve (12) out of eighteen (18), constituting about 67% of the business units performed weakly (i.e. scored 94% and below) (Fig. ...
Context 3
... trend was observed in Fig. 11, with supply chain business units marginally upstaging company business units in performance in emergency preparedness and response. Correlation of the effectiveness of implementation of systems performance and emergency preparedness and response is 0.59 ...
Citations
... Sumaedi and Yarmen (2015) proposed an instrument that can be used to measure the effectiveness of the application of ISO 9001. Foli et al. (2010) evaluated the effectiveness of the planning and implementation stages of ISO 14001 on environmental management systems. Johnstone and Hallberg (2020) explores the role of contextual factors in the adoption of ISO 14001 and the improvement of environmental performance in SMEs. ...
... Evaluation of As pollution is based on risk assessment using historical data, while, compliance values are also determined from effluent monitoring results. Both processes are used to set objectives and targets in management plans (Foli et al., 2010). The dependence on historical data and effluent results only, are inadequate for As risk estimation and compliance monitoring in the mine drainage. ...
A Thesis submitted to the Department of Geological Engineering (Faculty of Civil and Geo-Engineering) College of Engineering in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY JUNE 2017 (Editted Version: April 2019) ii DECLARATION I hereby declare that this submission is my own work towards the PhD and that, to the best of my knowledge, it contains no material previously published by another person, nor material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree of the University, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text. ABSTRACT The AngloGold-Ashanti Obuasi mine in Ghana officially opened in 1895. For many decades, gold mining activities of the company have resulted in arsenic (As) contamination in mine drainage. At Obuasi, Acid-Base Accounting (ABA) is used to predict mine drainage quality, while Toxicity Characterisation Leaching Procedure (TCLP) and drainage monitoring are used to characterise As leaching in tailings and verify drainage quality, respectively. This research investigated the leaching potential and remediation of As in mine drainage. ABA and TCLP tests, leachate, textural and mineralogical analyses of tailings, and porosity and bulk density of subsurface soils were evaluated. From the ABA, mean sulphur and CO3 2-values are 1.46%, 4.34 kgCaCO3/ton, indicating a high acid drainage potential that requires an amendment with 41.29 kgCaCO3/ton based on 3-data point model. A 4-data point model is however developed and increased the amendment value to 49.55 kgCaCO3/ton with a 20% change. Leachable As in tailings is 2.45 mg/l, while bulk density and porosity of undisturbed and disturbed soils are 2.029 g/cc and 0.411, and, 1.975 g/cc and 0.599, respectively. TCLP and borehole media are analogous over pH range of 5.7-6.3. From tailings mineralogical data analysis, goethite and alunite occur as secondary minerals. From integrated ABA, TCLP and borehole data, simulated stable As value and, AR and pH ranges are 2.0 mg/l, 0.097-0.121 and 5.4-5.9, respectively, while, pH ranges for As adsorption and secondary mineral formation are 4.3-7.7 and 2.3-4.4, respectively. The predicted pH values are related to the monitored, by a factor of 1.154. In closed systems, the equilibrium concentration of 0.5 mg/l is required for natural attenuation to occur in the borehole. As degrades from 2.50 mg/l to 0.01 mg/l in 4 years in boreholes and over 12 km along stream profile; this information was used to establish As risk assessment model based on documented global impact data. Using porosity, bulk density and degradation constants, As retardation factors of 1.96, 1.86 and 1.07, and corresponding solute velocities of 1.53x10-7 , 1.61x10-7 ms-1 and 9.25x10-1 ms-1 were estimated in undisturbed soil and disturbed soil and along stream profile, respectively. In conclusion, the new ABA Model, As and pH values, risk assessment model, retardation factors and solute velocities can be used to remediate As in mine drainage. iii DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my wife Eva, sons Schwarzer Nutifafa and Gordon Mawutor and daughter Salem Mawuena for their support, sacrifices and understanding.
... The environmental indicators can also be addressed through environmental management planning and implementation (e.g. Foli et al., 2010). From table 1, the significant factors in tables 2 and 3 were ranked and used to calculate the consequence and likelihood of impact as presented in tables 5. ...
This paper uses risk assessment of socio-economic and environmental indicators to develop criteria for apportionment (AP) of funds to communities impacted by mining activities within a Forest Reserve environment in Ghana. A t-test statistic of assessment data shows that factors such as; cost of living, health conditions, air pollution, water contamination, land degradation and distance (D km) are significant. Ratings of the factors using a 1-5 intensity scale to determine risk values (RV) for communities indicate that RV of 25 requires no remediation, while (25-RV) is remediation factor. A long-term AP criterion using the ranked risk (RR) values is defined by the equation APRR%=7.45-0.233(RR) with R2 of 0.961. Based on this criterion, communities D and S which are located at 1.5 and 16.1km from the mining focus have APRR values of 7.23% and 2.26%, respectively. APRR% in relation to distance is defined by the equation APRR%=7.22-0.281(D) with R2 of 0.647. RR-dependent distance equation (APD %) is used to deduce a short-term criterion defined by K*APD%=4.13-0.097(RR), where K is a constant. The expression of (APRR-K*APD) represents the residual apportionment required after a long-term assessment. The findings in this research demonstrate well-defined patterns that can be replicated for similar future projects.
... Otherwise, an organization's environmental performance criteria set by management are evaluated based on environmental aspects and impacts to meet objectives of the EMS in a suitable way (Turki et al. 2015). Environmental aspects play a crucial role in the formulation of effective environmental policy, thus laying the basis for the whole EMS improvement (Gordon et al. 2010). Moreover, complying with regulation should limit environmental degradation by several industries through the no rational consumption of water, energy, and materials via their activities such as production, transport, provision of support service, and management. ...
This paper attempts to assess environmental performance indicators (EPIs) of Tunisian food industry as
well as the effectiveness of its environmental management system (EMS) according to the ISO 14001
standard. It is related to the management effort which is measured by management performance indicators
and to organization’s operations representing the operational performance indicators in order to reduce the
significance of environmental impacts. Otherwise, it does reflect critical success and barriers of
environmental performance of a food company for its management and operation processes according to
the Tunisian context. Moreover, this research focuses on environmental condition indicators (ECIs) in
developing of environmental performance evaluation (EPE). EPIs and ECIs depend closely on the
compliance of the food company with applicable laws and regulatory requirements that stimulate the
pollution prevention. Furthermore, EPE integrates environmental and human health risks in assessment
process consequently ensuring the adoption of a new policy by decision makers under the concept of
continuous improvement. However, it should discuss a voluntary initiative taking by the top managers to
prevent pollution and to share information in a structured and regular way.
... The continuous improvement reflects a good environmental management system and is holistically based on the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) business process implement model (Gordon et al. 2010). Deming theory or PDCA cycle stimulate to improve products, services or processes inside companies. ...
... To support continuous improvement, business professionals continually examine their processes to discover and eliminate environmental problems. Therefore, EMS requires from organizations to formulate an environmental policy for planning, implementing, monitoring and measurement for effectiveness (Gordon et al., 2010). The objectives and targets shall be specific, measurable, accuracy, realistic, timing, extending and rewarding where practicable, and consistent with the environmental policy, including the commitments to prevention of pollution, to compliance with applicable laws and other regulatory requirements. ...
... The objectives and targets shall be specific, measurable, accuracy, realistic, timing, extending and rewarding where practicable, and consistent with the environmental policy, including the commitments to prevention of pollution, to compliance with applicable laws and other regulatory requirements. An organization's environmental performance criteria set by management are evaluated based on environmental aspects and impacts performance to meet objectives of the EMS in a sustainable way (Gordon et al. 2010). ...
This paper reports environmental analysis results of food and tannery Tunisian companies to identify the features of environmental management system (EMS) that is implemented recently. EMS via ISO 14001 has become one of the principal tools used by companies to handle environmental aspects and impacts through their various complex activities interacted with environment. While several companies have implemented and maintained a formal EMS, it has related mainly to their benefits in short term without responding to the sustainable development recommendations and practices. This study focuses on the strong linkage between the EMS effectiveness of food–tannery Tunisian companies and sustainability. A proactive environmental management approach is proposed and adopts a qualitative and quantitative assessment for factor analysis. It provides a strategic EMS framework and principles for sustainability to evolve the future enterprises’ benefits that has a clear influence on environmental performance in long term.
... Expressions of this kind are, however, not very informative because they equate scenarios that have low probability but catastrophic effects to those that are of high probability but have only minor or in the range consequences (Landis et al., 1998). Furthermore, chemical pollutions at the mine are managed using environmental management plans (Foli et al., 2010), which are only focused on effluent discharges, without adequate evaluation of the subsurface material characteristics (Anon, 2007). The objectives of this research are, therefore, to 1) use mass-time and distance analysis to establish an empirical model for determining As impact intensity in the environment, 2) evaluate bulk density and porosity of the subsurface material to be used for estimating compliance values for As in water. ...
This research evaluated arsenic (As) intensity risk using sorption and geotechnical factors in the AngloGold Obuasi mine environment in Ghana. Water samples from tailings dam boreholes and surface stream were analysed for As contents over a time period of 24 months and over a distance of about 9 km respectively, under closed conditions, where there are no more discharges of waste. The porosity and bulk density of the subsurface material were also determined. Data generated from the mass-time and mass-distance analysis were used to establish As intensity risk assessment model based on documented global As impact data. From the model, a period of about 4 years is required in monitoring boreholes and a distance of about 12 km is required along the stream profile for As concentration to reduce from the maximum value of about 2.50 mg/l to 0.01 mg/l. Using the porosity, bulk density and combined degradation properties of the monitored media of the mobile As, the estimated retardation factor was 1.96 and the solute velocity estimated to be 1.53 × 10⁻⁷ms⁻¹ in the borehole environment, and 1.074 and 9.25 × 10⁻¹ ms⁻¹ along the streambed, respectively. This study shows that the pollution risk assessment model can be used to spatially estimate exposure to As contamination in the environment, while the transport characteristics can be used to determine clean-up criteria for effective As remediation in drainage.
... In addition to the enactment of stringent regulations to stabilise arsenical waste prior to disposal, concerns have also made it mandatory for major mining companies to establish internationally accepted environmental standards for managing environmental issues, such as the kind due to As contamination. Common among these standards is the International Standards Organization series on the environment (ISO 14001), for which the Obuasi mine was certified in November 2006 (Foli et al., 2010). ...
... When establishing the ISO 14001 standards environmental management system (EMS), environmental aspects such as As contamination in water are assessed for impact significance, and rated for the risk they pose to the environment (Poder, 2006;Foli et al., 2010). The risk rated environmental aspects then form the basis for the design and construction of objectives and targets policy (Anthony, 2001;ISO 14001:2004ISO 14001: , 2008 for use in EMPs. ...
Arsenic (As) contamination of water bodies in the Obuasi mining district of Ghana which has significantly affected the socio-economic life of inhabitants of most of the surrounding villages has been reported (Actionaid, 2006). The gold ores contain high sulphide minerals composed mainly of the primary As bearing mineral, arsenopyrite (Osae et al., 1995). The As in the ore decomposes to release As, which is one of the dominant trace metals in mill tailings in the Obuasi environment (Foli & Nude, 2011). Arsenic in tailing is stabilized from the As (III) ion to As (V) in the form of complexes by oxidation during the treatment of the ores (Marsden & House, 2006). In tailings impoundments, both hydrological and geochemical factors may induce desorption of the As (V) back to As (III) state (Blowes, 1997). The mobile As may then infiltrate soil pore spaces and become discharged as contaminants into underlying aquifers, shallow water sources and, or surface streams. From the various contamination water sources, As may become available for uptake by biota. Chronic exposure of humans and animals
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study the environmental indicators of an ISO 14001:2004 certified thermal power plant located at Raiwind road Lahore.
Design/methodology/approach
The research study included employee interviews, noise monitoring, effluent and ground water sampling, stack emission testing, and assessment of the solid waste management system.
Findings
Semi-structured interviews randomly conducted with employees showed a 57 percent environmental awareness response. The stack emission results showed that the nitrogen oxide (NOx) from engine no. 5 and 7 was 2,447 and 2,624 mg/Nm³, respectively, higher than the World Bank limit of 2,300 mg/Nm³ as well as exceeding the 600 mg/Nm³ set by the National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) with no emission control technology in place. The ground water and effluent samples were found unfit for irrigation purposes. Electrical conductivity exceeded the permissible level of Directorate of Land Reclamation (DLR) irrigation water quality criteria of 1.5 dS/m. Similarly, the sodium absorption ratio (SAR) exceeded 10 mmolc/l. Residual sodium carbonate was more than the DLR permissible level of 2.5 me/l. The noise level in the engine hall was 103 dB(A) which is beyond the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s permissible exposure limit of 90 dB(A) and the NEQS for industrial area at day time, i.e. 75 dB(A).
Research limitations/implications
The research analysis shows that environmental survey may serve as an example for other power plants to review their environmental policy and be more vigilant as an environmentally conscious organization.
Originality/value
This paper underscores an easy understanding and evaluation of environmental indicators that are minor but neglected in a thermal power plant. The sampling, testing, and employee awareness are crucial to gauge the level of an organization’s conformity with the international quality, occupational health, and environmental standards.
ISO 14001 gives five strategic steps or clauses to build an Environmental Management System. These clauses become critical success factors in the implementation of ISO 14001. The research was based on a case study in a cement company in Indonesia which has been certified with ISO 14001 since 1999. Critical success factors of ISO 14001 implementation for each management level in the cement company were analyzed using logistic regression. The purpose was to obtain the most important factors (clauses) which should be given the main attention by the cement company in order to get better results in implementing ISO 14001. Beside positive influence of factors or clauses in the ISO 14001 negative influence was also found. For workers, Implementation and Operation (odds ratio 7.367) and Management Reviews (odds ratio 3.136) gave significant positive influence to the success of ISO 14001 implementation. While for supervisors, Implementation and Operation (odd 22.897) and Checking and Corrective Actions (odd 32.427) showed significant positive influence on the success of ISO 14001 implementation. There are no significant factors that influenced the success of ISO 14001 implementation for managers. Although the results were insignificant, the Management Reviews gave a negative influence in ISO 14001 implementation for managers. Also, Checking and Corrective Actions (odd 0.331) showed significant negative influence for ISO 14001 implementation for workers, while planning (odds 0.331) provided a significant negative influence for ISO 14001 implementation for supervisors. The negative influence indicated potential problems in the organization of the cement company; thereby, organizational ergonomics are seen as a good solution to identify and overcome the problems.
