An Environmental, Health, and Safety (EH&S) Compliance Audit assesses an organization’s compliance with regulations applicable to your facility. The audit acts as a proactive measure to help businesses identify potential risks before they become significant issues.
Having an EH&S Audit performed can identify violations of regulations from state environmental organizations, federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), or the workplace safety standards established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). If violations of any rules or regulations are identified in an audit, the professionals who performed the EH&S Compliance Audit will provide a list of corrective actions to take to remedy the violations. Identifying and correcting violations in an EH&S Audit often gives businesses a chance to address issues before they are fined or penalized for them.
EH&S Audits are generally not required by state and federal regulations. However, they provide the opportunity to identify and resolve potential compliance problems proactively, measure the effectiveness of a facility’s safety and environmental practices, and highlight training needs.
Voluntary compliance audits help businesses maintain consistent environmental, safety, and health practices and a reputation that fosters trust among customers, partners, and shareholders. Specifically, EH&S Compliance Audits can help with the following:
The first thing you need to do when preparing for an Environmental, Health, and Safety Compliance Audit is determine the audit’s scope and focus. Some audits focus on environmental compliance, others focus on health and safety compliance, and some focus on both. It is important to have relevant documentation and written programs readily available for the auditors to review. The auditors will also walk through your facility to observe typical operations and the environmental and safety measures that are in place.
Effective EH&S Audits require careful planning. Defining the scope, creating a detailed audit plan, and gathering relevant documents are all part of this process. Other audit elements include reviewing policies, interviewing employees and management, and evaluating applicable laws.
The EH&S Compliance Audit process includes a facility visit, observations, and interviews that provide crucial insights into the workplace’s safety culture. After compiling findings, auditors recommend corrective actions and present a comprehensive report to management and employees.
The facility walkthrough is a critical component of an EH&S Compliance Audit. The walkthrough allows auditors to see typical operations in different areas of the facility and understand the hazards and environmental impacts associated with these operations. The walkthrough also provides an opportunity for auditors to observe the environmental and safety procedures and controls that are in place, as well as whether employees are following procedures and implementing the available controls.
Record keeping is essential to maintaining EH&S compliance, and an auditing team can help ensure that a business’s records are well kept. Auditors will review the EH&S records that have been kept and compare those records to the applicable regulatory requirements. From this review, auditors can identify gaps in the recordkeeping and make recommendations for improved compliance.
During an EH&S Compliance Audit, auditors will typically speak with a broad range of employees, including upper management, direct supervisors, and other staff. This may consist of formal meetings but often will consist of questions asked during the walkthrough as the operations and procedures are observed. The questions are often asked to ascertain how well employees understand the hazards in their workplace, the level of support for EH&S from management, etc.
Upon completion of the EH&S Compliance Audit, the auditors will provide a corrective action plan. This plan will present the areas of noncompliance that were identified during the audit and will provide specific recommendations on how to achieve compliance. It is imperative that facilities act on these recommendations to improve their EH&S compliance.
An EH&S Compliance Audit could be performed by an internal team of personnel as long as they are well-trained in hazard identification, capable of identifying violations, and well-versed in the EPA and state environmental statutes and regulations and the federal OSHA safety standards that apply to facilities. However, to ensure objectivity, the people performing the audit should not be checking their own teams or departments. Considering these factors, having an external audit team that can offer an outside perspective is often more effective.
Professional third-party EH&S Compliance Auditors, like LAN Associates, have the requisite qualifications to identify relevant issues and can offer guidance and expertise, along with a comprehensive and accurate audit.
Regularly performing EH&S Audits can provide critical support for maintaining a safe and healthy workplace and avoiding issues with regulatory agencies. Many facilities do audits every three years or at some other regular frequency to stay ahead of potential violations.
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