Background European local authorities are developing new management approaches based on the 'plan-do-check-review' process, which, starting from agreed targets and programs, implements a verification system in order to promptly intervene if necessary with corrective actions. The recently issued EMAS Regulation (761/2001), open to all organisations, is well suited for these purposes. It raises citizens' awareness of an administration's success or failure, thus guaranteeing new communication channels for the sake of involvement and accountability. Objectives The project aims to encourage the take-up of EMAS by local bodies, by designating the tool as the best fit for harmonising other currently available environmental policy instruments (Local Agenda 21, Strategic Environmental Assessment, environmental balance, etc.), and thus for better exploiting local efforts towards Sustainable Development. Moreover, the project will ensure homogeneity across a territory, through co-operation between bordering authorities, and at different levels (Provinces, Municipalities), as well as through a subsequent harmonisation of their environmental policies. The partnership includes eight Provinces and two Municipalities. At the end of the project, the results will be presented to other Italian Provinces (100), to mid-large sized Municipalities (150) and to the other European authorities. Specifically, the project will: - define technical methodologies, environmental analyses and environmental management systems designed to help local bodies develop synergies between EMAS and their competencies, LA21, SEA, etc.; - propose a methodology for developing synergies among local bodies with overlapping territorial competence; - enhance environmental communication between citizens and companies; - stimulate greater awareness of environmental targets amongst local bodies, citizens and companies; - provide the European Community with proposals referring to Objectives 1 and 2, and with registration specifications for suitable organisations. Results The main result is the elaboration of guidelines for the application of an E.M.S. in a local authority, building on the activities and the existing or foreseen actions taken in respect of Agenda 21. TANDEM has achieved the objective of defining how the EMAS Regulation can be adopted by a local body operating across a large territory on the basis of its own administrative relations with the territory (administrative TANDEM) and in synergy with other territorial management tools (TANDEM with LA21, Environmental Strategic Assessment, planning, etc.). The main objective of the project is the diffusion of an applicable methodology for every local body that: -Helps the body in the application of EMAS; -Develops synergies among the local public authorities operating the same territory; -Creates a common framework using all the voluntary tools, such as LA21 and Environmental accountability. The project involved four main activities: 1.Organization of a wide working group (“Open Group”) of local bodies. These bodies are not part of the partnership. This activity enabled further validation of the results through the examination and sharing of methodologies for adopting the key points of the Regulation (Deliverable 1). 2.Establishment of a methodology to delineate and characterize the action field where the Environmental Management System has to be planned in a public organisation operating in a large territory (Deliverable 2); 3.Establishment of methodologies for the environmental review development (Deliverable 3) and for the planning of an Environmental Management System in TANDEM with LA21, with other management tools and considering administrative TANDEM (Deliverable 4); 4.Results diffusion, during and after the project The activities were developed through workshops and Open Groups. A substantial number of local public bodies (more than 40) periodically met to compare their experience of the EMAS Regulation and environmental management, and to explore problems, solutions and possible opportunities. Ten items were studied: 1.Possible choices about the entity to be registered and exclusions; 2.Relationship between the environmental review and the state of the environment report, territorial balances, 3.Definition, approval and management of the environmental programme and the action plan; 4.Management of indirect aspects (contracts, grants, concessions, etc.); 5.Use of indicators in EMAS and LA21; 6.Clearness about the organisation’s structure as a tool for achieving objectives; 7.EMAS and LA21 as tools of awareness of citizens and awareness and involvement of the interested parties; 8.Ensuring and control of legal compliance; 9.EMAS applied to an Industrial District or Area; 10.Analysis of the overlapping of competences of the public institution assigned by law and the role in the LA21 process and EMAS. The main results of the technical activities were contained in Deliverable D2-D3-D4 D2–METHODS FOR SCOPING. The deliverable D2 confirms that it is difficult to understand how to register only a part of the organisation. The application field of the environmental management system should include at least all the functions that have total or partial control capacity. They should participate in the management of the territory. The definition of an organisation in the EMAS Regulation underlines “own functions and administrations” as a reference concept for the application of an Environmental Management system in Public Administrations. It is possible to register also as an organisation without a juridical position, or parts or groups of organisations, but it is necessary to analyse the real functional and administrative autonomy of the sector, department or service before deciding to certificate them. So it is evident that the best choice is certification of the whole organisation. LA21 can complement the EMAS system. It is not possible to consider the LA21 as a organisation to be registered. However, Local Agenda 21 is part of the organisation and produces policies, programmes and projects that try, as EMAS does, to involve all the body’s sections. D3–GUIDELINE FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW. The deliverable D3 describes the contents of the ER in accordance with the EMAS regulation. D3 confirms that each organisation can adopt the best scheme for its purposes, ensuring the following five essential elements: - Information and data completeness to describe EMS - Information about the assessment of direct and indirect environmental aspects; - Information and data traceability; - The environmental aspects assessment criteria should be clear and verifiable; - EMAS regulation Annex VII requirements should be respected. The differences between the Environmental review and the State of Environment report are the following: - The environmental review identifies the relationship – direct and indirect – between an organisation and the territory. Instead the state of the environment report is a snapshot of the environment, where the impacts caused by the actions and pressures of all the stakeholders and organisations in the territory are measured. - The state of the environment report is the basis for a decision process in the local action plan shared by all the stakeholders in the LA21 Forum. The environmental review aims at providing a picture of the situation as a support of environmental impact evaluations of the organisation’s activities for the significant aspects identification. - The information in the environmental review should be updated as the environmental system operates. The state of the environment report is a document elaborated at a certain date and it does not need to be updated; - The state of the environment report also considers social aspects. This is not required in the environment review. - The state of the environment report contains only indicators of the territorial environment. D4–PLANNING OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM EMS activities were explained in Deliverable 4: “Guidelines to establish and Environmental Management System in TANDEM with a Local Agenda 21 process”. All the choices about EMS planning considered the relationship between EMAS and LA21. Task 3.2 regarded EMS planning and implementation. The provinces of Ferrara, Bologna, Parma, Genoa and the Municipality of Ferrara were analysed according to the ISO 14001:96 rule and EMAS regulation (761/01), searching operative and organisation solutions, developing procedures and documents for EMS development. The guidelines validation, carried out during “Task 3.3”, was completed within “Task 3.4” with the contribution of “Validation Group” project partners. This guide aims to be a reference point for all the local bodies that promote the EMAS Regulation together with a Local Agenda 21 process. A practical approach was adopted: the application of the Regulation requirements to public administrations were discussed; moreover, concrete problems and aspects of EMS planning, implementation and maintenance were presented by project partners and by the “Open Group” during the TANDEM project activities. The connections between EMAS and Local Agenda 21 processes were also studied. Finally, the guide divides the EMS process into 2 phases: planning and maintaining. The guidelines contain 5 chapters. After the first chapter of introduction, the Deliverable is composed of the following paragraphs: Chapter 2-Discussion of aspects and problems that could be applied directly or indirectly to all the EMAS aspects and problems of the planning, implementation and maintenance phases of an EMS. Chapter 3-Discussion of planning processes and requirements maintenance of an EMAS EMS, in tandem with LA21. Chapter 4-Glossary. Chapter 5-Definitions. This project has been selected as one of the 24 "Best" LIFE Environment projects in 2004-2005