UNEP Report ‘Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland’ Published
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WISenvironmental participated in the United Nations Environment Programme programme to independently assess the environmental impact of oil-field contamination in the Ogoni Region of south-west Nigeria. The team was managed by Rob Holmes. The over-riding objective of WISenvironmental’s task was to identify the range of possible full-scale remediation technologies available commercially for oil-contaminated soils and sediments and to present their indicative costs, resource requirements, operational footprint and possible output specifications. Site visits were carried out at the invitation of the operators by the project team process engineers to three locations in Belgium to witness and assess the suitability of soil washing, bioremediation and thermal desorption operations.
The final report ‘Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland’ was published in late-2011 by UNEP. Over a 14-month period the UNEP team examined more than 200 locations, surveyed 122km of pipeline rights of way, reviewed more than 5,000 medical records and engaged more than 23,000 people at local community meetings. Detailed soil contamination investigations were conducted at 69 sites and more than 4,000 samples, including groundwater from wells drilled for the study, were analysed.
The findings in the report underline that there are, in a significant number of locations, serious threats to human health from contaminated drinking water and there are concerns over the viability and productivity of ecosystems. The study provides the government, stakeholders and the international community with invaluable baseline information on the scale of the challenge and priorities for actions in terms of clean-up and remediation going forward.
Certification Success for Healthcare Products Company
The company has been supporting the development of an ISO14001 certifiable environmental management system since the EMS programme’s inception at the Basingstoke-based UK headquarters of a healthcare products organization, which is a world leader in the field of in vitrio diagnostics. The pre-certification support culminated in the completion of two audits in late-2011 – a full-system internal audit and a legal compliance audit. Completion of subsequent corrective actions and closing out all audit findings helped ensure that no non-conformities were reported during the initial audit by DNV Certification Services in late-November 2011 when a recommendation for certification was made.
RSPB Role
Director Rob Holmes has been appointed as an EMS Technical Consultant for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds EMS. The voluntary role supports the implementation of certifiable environmental management systems across the organisation’s head office, 6 regional offices and approximately 200 nature reserves. The organization has commenced the process by carrying out an environmental review of a cross-section of offices and reserves. The review will identify all environmental aspects of the organization’s activities and how these are currently managed and will also enable the environmental aspects of significance to be determined.
Strong Start to 2011 Audit Year
Acting as a DNV Certification Lead Auditor through the first quarter of 2011, director Rob Holmes carried out recertification audits of 3 businesses’ and periodic audits of 6 businesses’ environmental management systems to the requirements of the ISO14001:2004 standard. The businesses include:
o Cognis Limited
o Computer Cab plc
o Deutsche Bank
o The Land Registry
o The Leaflet Company
o Selex Systems Integration Limited
o St Ives Direct
o St Ives Web
Compliance Audit of Clinical Waste Incinerator
Director Rob Holmes acted as the lead auditor in a WISenvironmental team commissioned by Veolia Environmental Services in the last quarter of 2010 to carry out an audit of the clinical waste incineration operations at the Tyseley Energy-from-Waste facility at Tyseley, Birmingham. The audit followed the much delayed publication in July 2010 of Environment Agency guidance EPR5.07 Clinical Waste in the ‘How to Comply with your Environmental Permit’ series and followed on from the need of VES to determine the level of compliance of current activities in relation to the ‘appropriate measures’ identified in the new guidance. WISenvironmental audited and reported on the following activities:
- Measures undertaken pre-acceptance and upon delivery of the waste to the site;
- Measures for waste storage and handling; and
- Measures for the control of emissions to air, surface water and sewer
The audit was carried out during a four-day period of assessment during which, by processes of observation, examination of documents and from interviews, two senior auditors collected the information necessary through to verify that operational controls conformed with permit and ‘appropriate measures’ requirements or to identify ‘findings’ where operational controls were not in conformity. A plan to address the findings and to implement corrective actions has been drawn up on site.
Expert Witness Engagement
Director Rob Holmes has been engaged as an exert witness by the Dublin law firm A L Goodbody in support of a civil action scheduled to be heard in the Dublin High Court in Spring 2011. This is being taken by the law firm’s Dutch client who is suing for damages resulting from the alleged misclassification and mismanagement of hazardous waste exported from a pharmaceuticals manufacturing facility in Ireland to an allegedly inappropriate and inadequately permitted treatment facility in Belgium under Transfrontier Shipment regulations. Process residues from the treatment facility were supplied to the animal feed chain. The matter came to light when Dutch pig farmers complained to their regulators of health problems in their animals and the identification of contaminants allegedly from the treatment facility in pig feed in mid-2002. The action is being taken against the waste producer and their waste brokers at the time of the incident.
Compliance Auditing Return
June 2010
Holmes Environmental Ltd have been engaged by Manchester-based AEC Ltd. to form part of a team conducting audits of environmental, health, and safety activities for a leading US multinational organisation at two of their manufacturing facilities located in Manchester and Worcester. Rob Holmes will act as the auditor knowledgeable in environmental regulations. The multinational’s audit manager will participate in and lead the audits to achieve an audit format and final report consistent with corporate standards. One of the facilities was previously audited in mid 2007.
EMS Design & Maintenance
April 2010 On-going
The Company has been awarded a contract to design and support the implementation of a certifiable EMS at a Hampshire based health care company which is a world leader in the field of in vitro diagnostics. The environmental programme is currently under development.
EMS development support is being provided by WISenvironmental to a business service centre in the Isle of Wight which provides and administers specialist insurance products to the retail, manufacturing, banking and telecommunications industries.
WISenvironmental is also currently leading the design and development of a certifiable EMS for the boiler-cleaning business KRR (UK) Ltd.
Certification Audits
2009 to March 2010
The time spent by Principal Rob Holmes on-site carrying out ISO14001 EMS certification audits and compliance audits topped 400 hours in the 2009 to April 2010 period. The impact of the global recession on the UK economy may explain the 20% fall in auditing hours recorded in the latest period compared with statistics from 2008.
Support in Expansion of EMS Scope
The Company has been invited by W&S Recycling to provide on-going support in adding up to 6 additional waste recycling centres to the scope of the certified EMS operating at Millhams Recycling Centre in Bournemouth since summer 2008.
News
- UNEP Report ‘Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland’ Published
- Certification Success for Healthcare Products Company
- RSPB Role
- Strong Start to 2011 Audit Year
- Compliance Audit of Clinical Waste Incinerator
- Expert Witness Engagement
- Compliance Auditing Return
- EMS Design & Maintenance
- Certification Audits
- Support in Expansion of EMS Scope