FOSTERING EFFECTIVE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT ENVIRONMENTAL RESULTS Prepared for James E. Hayes Regulatory Innovations Staff Office of Policy Planning and Evaluation in cooperation with the Office of Cooperative Environmental Management • US Environmental Protection Agency Prepared by Technical Resources, Inc. ------- Introduction Successful environmental management is based largely upon the amount, types, and quality of human resources applied toward identifying, studying, regulating, and managing environmental concerns. Knowledgeable and skilled people, supported by an understanding management structure, are needed in both industry and the regulatory community. This combination of human resources, training, and experience has often been referred to as "human capital." Without this "human capital," otherwise progressive management systems will not succeed in implementing an environmental ethic. We all have seen examples where lack of astute management or this vital human ingredient have created major problems for both the regulated entities and the regulatory community. Without these ingredients, standards cannot be formulated, regulated organizations cannot comply, regulators cannot regulate, and environ- mental problems can neither be avoided nor ameliorated. Our ability to develop, perfect, and disseminate the use of new and appropriate technologies is also impaired if humancapital is unavailable or captured by competing industries. Managing environmental programs within regulated entities is a complex task requiring certain skills, training, and knowledge. What can be done to promote practices which provide more and better environmental managers who are capable of effecting the development, utilization, and dissemination of appropriate technologies and practices that result in positive environmental change? Solutions will involve a greater degree of cooperation between the regulated community and regulatory agencies as well as the knowledge base and teaching skills of academia. Because of the need to expand the supply and improve the quality of environmental managers, we foresee a move toward profes- sionalization that involves acquisition of basic skills, diverse experience, and continuing education. The Role of Environmental Management -An Integrated Approach There are good economic reasons for industry to adopt an environmental ethic: inefficiency and excessive waste generation reduce profitability; enforcement actions often cause ex- pensive litigations, punitive judg- ments, lost production, and exorbitant mitigation costs; and publicity from environmental problems diminishes corporate good will and may reduce product marketability. Because of lia- bility issues, banks and insurance companies often apply considerable pressure on firms to comply with envi- ronmental regulations, mitigate envi- ronmental damage, and adopt sound management practices. These eco- nomic reasons for effective environ- mental management practices are in concert with the broad concepts of our legal system that uphold all user's rights to both resources and an un- damaged environment. Human Retourcea Environmental Management Technology \7 ENVIRONMENTAL RESULTS ------- With the increasing level of environmental regulation, there has been an increasing demand in both industry and regulatory agencies for environmentally knowledgeable managers. People performing this function in industry today do not have formal education in environmental management itself, but they have been "retrofitted" to the function with on-the-job experience, and occasional training. This has been the traditional approach to the emergence of a new profession—the environmental manager. Today, this person has broad ranging duties and responsibilities and has been blessed (or cursed) with oversight of complex and ever changing regulatory programs. POTENTIAL INITIATIVES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT TRAINING These initiatives are planks in a platform to support the transfer of knowledge and systems from first round adopters to others. They are intended to disseminate knowledge, to promote innovation, and to attain environmental compliance goals more quickly through the cooperation of industry, academia, and government. These initiatives include: * establishing cooperative university programs for graduate students to expose students to both private sector and public sector environmental management needs and regulatory "realities," • developing environmental management case studies which illustrate successful management approaches to common problems, and dissemination of this information through select regional out reach programs, * increasing opportunities for mid-level career environmental managers to acquire and transfer knowledge on compliance-enhancing programs within state or Federal government, • promoting the use of computerized environmental management systems such as: - expert systems - database management systems that track regulations and certain regulatory requirements, or support environmental audit programs • training systems • working with selected Masters of Business Administration (MBA) or Management Information Sys- tems (MIS) programs to promote an academic major or emphasis in environmental management, • developing guidelines for curricula for continuing education credits in environmental management, • working with select universities to develop both educational and training programs related to environmental management training, • developing mechanisms for senior environmental managers to serve as advisors to both MBA and engineering programs seeking to embrace environmental management concepts. L Currently, formal environmental management systems or even an identifiable environmental manager are often missing in business firms. When a specific person is designated as a responsible individual, he or she may not nec- essarily have the training or backround to deal with the diverse aspects involved. Thus, regulated entities may not be able to mitigate today's environmental problems because of a lack of knowledge base and unified approach; they may also be unable to avoidfuture environmental problems because knowledge and skills are not accessible in the planning stages. ------- In pursuit of better environmental management, the EPA- Regulatory Innovations Staff is soliciting input on initiatives that will promote transfer of good environmental management tools and stimulate environmental manager training. Potential initiatives promote the building of human capitol for environmental management, better organization of envi- ronmental activities, and the diffusion of knowledge into regulated entitites and regulatory agencies at all government levels. The challenge for the future is to provide programs that forge links among the diverse skills directed at environmental management. In many cases, programs will bring areas of expertise together as new partners in skills and knowledge transfer. Resources for this expertise include industry environmental specialists; academic programs in law, manage- ment, engineering and science; and Federal and state government. The Making of an Environmental Manager - A New Opportunity For Cooperation Public Information Science The need for qualified environmental manag- ers by both the regulated sector and government will become increas- ingly apparent. The per- spectives required for environmental manage- ment are multi-faceted and will continue to grow in complexity as pres- sures mount to minimize waste; to make energy use more efficient; and to conserve and improve the quality of our envi- ronment. The environ- mental manager of to- morrow will need a bet- terfunctional knowledge of law, science, engi- neering, information sci- ence, human resources management, and public relations. He or she will need to be cognizant of issues and potential regulations on the ho- rizon. While today's environmental manager is often forced to wear many hats, and to accumulate training and ex- perience in reacting to environmental problems, the demands of the future will almost certainly preclude this approach. Tomorrow's corporate environmental manager will need the ability to direct and integrate the activities of a multi-dis- ciplinary staff oravariety of contractors. This profession will require skills in public relations to generate the confidence of both regulatory agencies and the neighboring community. Similarly, the environmental manager in local, state and Federal government must have the confidence of the regulated community and the public. Most critical to the suc- cessful function of environmental management within the regulated entity is the degree of access that the manager has to the decision levelwhhin the corporate structure. Since the ability to develop strategies for avoiding problems depends upon understanding corporate development plans, the environmental manager cannot function in a vacuum but must have access to information on business planning and operations. He or she must occupy a position of trust and influence in these operational decisions. Human Resource* Management Business Information Science ------- f Thus need presents an opportunity for establishing new cooperative actions among academia, industry, and gov- ernment to provide regional and na- tional programs to fill the need tor qualified environmental managers and other professionals. The Input of all three sectors is necessary to define the requirements for training environ- mental managers and to add structure to the "black box" concept of the posi- tion. Above all else, the manager must have the depth of practical and theo- retical knowledge necessary to antici- pate and resolve problems. The com- bined institutional response must be to define and coalesce the knowledge base and provide practical experience whenever possible. Many examples of environmental management training consortia al- ready exist, such as in programs at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Purdue University, University of California at Irvine, Tufts University, and the University of Wisconsin. Although many programs in environmental management training are media-specific (i.e., solid waste), comprehensive programs in environmental management will need to assume a multimedia approach and will need to integrate classroom education with experience. Clearly, this estab- lishes a role for both academic institutions and the business sector. While industry could provide practical experience through internships and personnel exchanges, academic institutions may provide the knowledge base, institutional format, and training specialists necessary for a training program. New initiatives by the EPA, such as the National Network for Environmental Management Studies (NNEMS), also strive to foster innovative approaches to environ- mental management training. All of these efforts need broader participation of interested parties to fill the need for the future. The importance of a cooperative approach cannol be overemphasized. How do we bring the pieces together to establish institutions for environmental managment training? Is it possible to initiate pilot programs as a basis for establishing more widespread programs later? Could we consider joint initiatives to develop undergraduate and graduate programs in this area? Could industry, government, and academia arrange for sabbatical exchanges? Could academia work with industry to develop tutorials and computerized training with artificial intelligence? Could government and industry assemble a case study guide of Best Management Practices for use in a curriculum? How can senior industry environmental managers best assist with curriculum development, advising, seminars, and exploring methods of financing these institutes? Committees that devise these curricula should also consider the role of continuing education, and formation of peer-matching networks to provide technical assistance in the workplace. Environmental Professionalization -Answering Tomorrow's Needs Industry environmental managers will need the opportunity and resources for continuing career training. Changes in technologies, regulations, and managment approach will require a willingness to integrate continuing education into professional development for environmental managers. The expansion of the knowledge base and traditional role of environmental manager will be necessary to support sound judgement in industry for growth and development. The ------- regulated community, financial, and liability insurance industries have a strong economic interest in avoiding losses caused by industry-related damage to the environment. This raises the issue of how the regulated community, their insurers, and sources of capital could ensure the quality of their environmental professionals' training. Could the industry-academia-govemmertt consortium on environmental management training establish a set of community- recognized standards (best practices) for environmental training? Is it reasonable to assume that some type of a professionalization process could be established that includes goals for training and knowledge for environmental managers? For managers, operations supervisors, or environmental auditors, programs in certrtication such as those established by professional associations could stimulate the development of quality training programs. This would be only one small part of an effort to professionalize environmental management and related functions. Other programs such as continuing education, personnel exchanges, and peer assistance networks will probably provide the best guaranty for quality professional development. EPA intends to work with all interested parties to enhance opportunities to meet present and future needs for training of corporate environmental managers. Action Items Create a supply and demand network to fill regional and national needs for qualified environmental professionals Identify experience, skills, and training promoting best practices In environmental management Initiate study of actions that would promote programs In environmental management improvement and professionalization Environmental Management Training Rmourc** ------- |