This document discusses environmental audits. It defines an environmental audit as a systematic, documented, periodic, and objective evaluation of how activities and projects comply with approved environmental management plans and sound environmental practices. The document outlines three phases of an environmental audit: planning, fieldwork, and reporting. It describes collecting data through document reviews, site inspections, interviews, and testing. The objectives are to verify compliance, assess procedures, establish current practices, identify improvements, and produce a report with findings and recommendations.

1. prepared by JAMES NYAGA

2.  Auditing in financial accounting means
gathering, analysing and certification of data.
 This involves gathering social, economic and
environmental information to check whether
or not an organisation is socially, economicall
or environmentaly sound. The process is
based on some laid down rules, policies or
regulations. It is a periodic undertaking. Eg,
once per year in production firms according
to EMCA , 1999

3. From the above defination, audits can be done
on all spheres of sustainability, in this
context, three types of audit can be
distinguished,
1. An economic audit may be equated to
financial audits
2. A social audit to coorporate social
responsibility
3. An ecological audit then becomes an
environmental audit.

4.  EA is seen as a management tool comprising
of a systematic , documented, periodic and
objective evaluation of how activities and
ongoing projects conform with approved
environmental management plan of that
specific project and sound environmental
practices.
 A comprehensive EA promotes safe and
healthy environments at all stages of a
project operation , as well as
decommissioning.

5.  An environmental audit shall be carried out
through questionnaires, environmental site
visits and test analysis. An EA is typically
conducted in three phases.

6.  The objectives here include.
 Development of an audit plan for the site
activities (should address where, what, how, who
and when aspects of the audit)
 Make neccessry arrangement on the site action
 Conduct initial site visit and prepare audit data
collection tools.
 Review background ;information and familiarize
with the site.
 Review operational information on site activities

7. a) Are there right systems in the place
b) Are the right materials or equipments.
c) Have staff been adequately trained
d) Is there in house monitoring systems
e) Are responsibiliuties clearly defined
An audit protocol should act as a ,guide
ensure relevant issues are covered
Standards of performance in the place
List of hazardous material in the site documented
List of wastes available etc

8.  Objectives include:
 verification of legislation and regulatory
compliance
 Assessment of internal policy and procedural
conformance.
 Establishment of current practice status.
 Identification of opportunities for
improvement

9.  Relevant document review
 Detailed site inspection with audit tools and
protocol.
 Interviewing staff to to obtain information on
actual practices,compliance with relevant
statutes of regulations etc
Conducting site audit
It is important to start a meeting at the audit
site, whose objectives are.

10.  Personal introduction and report building
 Inform one another in critical aspects of the
audit
 Establish official communication links
between the audit and the auditee
 Promote active participation by the auditee
 Review relevant site safety and emergency
procedures for the audit team.

11.  Main objective is to synthesize the collected
information (data analysis and interpretation )
and to produce an audit report.
 Contents of report depend on type of audit
done.
 A general report should have;
 Type of activity being audited
 Indication of activities, processes and
operations of the project.

12.  A prioritization of all past and ongoing
concerns
 Identification of environmental, occupational
health and safety concerns
 Detailed recommendation for corrective
activities , their costs, timetable and
mechanisms for implementation.
 Measures under the EMP to ensure
implementation is of acceptable
environmental standards.

13. SHOULD COMPRISE!
 Status of compliance with environmental
legislation of the land, e.g.. EMCA 1999.
 Status of conformity with internal environmental
policies, procedure and guidelines,
 Status of good environmental practice
implementations
 Level of awareness of operational issues relating
to environmental performance.
 Overall status of environment
 Recommendations for environmental perfomance
improvement.

14.  EA report shall include but not be limited to the
following information,
 Present and past impacts of the project
 Responsibility and proficiency of the operators of
the project.
 Existing internal control mechanisms to identify
and mitigate activities with negative
environmental impact.
 Control mechanisms to ensure the workers
health and safety
 Existence of environmental awareness and
sensitization measures.