Overview
ISO/IEC 17021-2:2016 sets competence requirements for personnel involved in audit and certification of Environmental Management Systems (EMS). It is a Part 2 technical supplement to ISO/IEC 17021-1, focusing specifically on EMS competence needs and complementing the generic requirements for conformity assessment bodies. The standard aligns with ISO 14001:2015 updates and clarifies the knowledge and skills auditors and other certification personnel must demonstrate to reliably assess EMSs.
Key Topics
This standard defines both generic and EMS‑specific competence areas. Major technical topics include:
- Environmental terminology and metrics
- Environmental aspects and impacts and life‑cycle perspective
- Monitoring and measurement techniques for emissions, discharges and resource use
- Emissions to air, releases to land and releases to water (sources, controls, monitoring)
- Use of raw materials, energy and natural resources, and energy emissions
- Waste management, use of space and related operational controls
- Environmental performance evaluation, compliance obligations and legal requirements
- Emergency preparedness and response, operational control and site‑related factors
- Context of the organization, scope, risks and opportunities, and communicated information
The standard also specifies competence for:
- Personnel who determine required audit team competence and audit time (application review)
- Personnel who review audit reports and make certification decisions
Annex A provides an informative knowledge list for EMS auditing and certification.
Applications
ISO/IEC 17021-2:2016 is used to:
- Define auditor competencies for EMS audits and certification against ISO 14001 and other environmental management requirements
- Support certification bodies in selecting and training audit teams, determining audit time, and making certification decisions
- Guide accreditation bodies when assessing conformity assessment bodies for EMS certification activities
- Help organizations and consultants prepare auditors and technical experts for EMS certification work
Typical users: certification bodies, accreditation assessors, EMS auditors, audit team leaders, internal audit program managers, and training providers.
Related Standards
- ISO/IEC 17021-1 - Generic requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems
- ISO 14001:2015 - Environmental Management Systems - Requirements
- Other parts of the ISO/IEC 17021 series for sector or scheme‑specific guidance
Keywords: ISO/IEC 17021-2:2016, EMS auditing, competence requirements, environmental management systems, ISO 14001:2015, conformity assessment, certification bodies, auditor competence.
Open preview (PDF)Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems — Part 2: Competence requirements for auditing and certification of environmental management systems