SMEs Given New Standard to Manage their Impact on the Environment

The British Standards Institute (BSI) has published a new British Standard (BS 8555: 2003) to promote best environmental practice for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). The new standard is published in association with Project Acorn, a UK based nation-wide project to help SMEs to grow and develop their own environmental performance controls.

Until now the drive to make business more environmentally friendly and to develop environmental management systems has concentrated on multinationals and large companies.

This is the first time that the challenges for SMEs to manage their impact on the environment have been specifically addressed. There are over 3.7 million SMEs in the UK, and small firms (which employ fewer than 10 people) make up over 90% of all firms in the country contributing around 40% to the UK's Gross National Product (GNP).

A website is available where you can read about the new standard and find out more on Project Acorn and how to implement environmental performance control in your organisation. Go to www.theacorntrust.org.
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