The new environmental management system standard has been going through the stages of review, with the FDIS (final draft) released in January this year which has now passed the final ballot stage to allow it to be published.
ISO 14001 was last reviewed and re-published in 2015, with some small amendments made in 2024. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) says that this new 2026 version reinforces environmental protection and business outcomes. It also says that the updates make the benefits of implementing ISO 14001 simpler to achieve, giving clearer guidance and smoother implementation.
Key changes in ISO 14001:2026
The new standard makes a number of changes. The main ones are:
- Editorial changes, updated references, restructuring and further notes of clarification.
- Shifts in terminology: ‘result’ will now be used for the outcome of a process or objective, and ‘fulfilment’ of compliance obligations becomes ‘meeting’ compliance obligations.
- ‘Outsourced processes’ will now be referred to as ‘externally provided processes, products or services’. Organisations must have control or influence over those relevant to the intended outcomes of their environmental management system (EMS).
- A more explicit focus on climate change and environmental conditions, such as the availability of natural resources for the analysis of organisational context.
- Top management must now support all relevant roles and not just management roles, extending the degree of responsibility and accountability.
- The requirement to consider life cycle perspective when setting the scope of the EMS.
- Environmental aspects are to be identified in relation to normal and abnormal conditions, and emergency situations.
- A new clause (6.1.4) has been added, focused specifically on identifying risks and opportunities.
- A new clause (6.3) has been added, ‘Planning of changes’, which requires organisations to specifically determine, plan, and manage changes that affect or could affect the intended outcomes of the EMS.
- The management review clause is now split into three subclauses: processes (9.3.1), inputs (9.3.2), and results (9.3.3).
- Internal audits now need to have defined objectives.
Plan your next steps
It is expected that there will be a transition period of three years, as has been the case with previous revisions to standards. This also fits with the three-year recertification cycle. Therefore, all current ISO 14001:2015 certificates should transition to the new ISO 14001:2026 before May 2029.
We’re here to help you stay informed and support you in implementing the changes required for ISO 14001:2026. You can book onto one of our ISO 14001:2026 Key Changes Awareness Training Courses where we will walk you through the key updates so you can prepare effectively and transition to the new standard with confidence. If you would prefer a tailored approach for your business, then our consultants are available for implementation support.
Already one step ahead?
For those that had already got hold of the FDIS, or perhaps already attended our course on the changes and want to know if there are any differences – I’ve checked each clause and there are only very minor changes, mostly grammatical alterations. So, if you were already ahead with making any changes, then continue with them – there are no differences between the FDIS and the final version that should impact this.