Environmental performance evaluation (EPE) for construction

Environmental management system (EMS) has been advocated for all economic sectors. Construction, as one of the pollution generators, is not exempt from EMS. However, in performing EMS, the greatest obstacle is the lack of objective performance evaluation criteria. ISO 14000 is an international environmental management system (EMS), which deals with the management of the organizational environmental performance. In 1999, ISO 14031 Environmental Performance Evaluation (EPE) was introduced for assessing the environmental performance related to the management and operational systems. The Hong Kong construction industry lags behind other sectors of the economy in implementing EMS and EPE because the self-initiating nature of the scheme lacks any external stimulus. The high initial cost of the scheme deters contractors from the implementation. However, the application of EPE offers many benefits to the Hong Kong construction industry. Therefore, this paper discusses the benefits and difficulties when implementing EPE in the construction industry. Some obstacles have been identified and suggestions to overcome them are made.