Environmental Compliance Audits
Recently enacted environmental laws have forced businesses, both large and small, to allocate budgets to address environmental concerns. Large scale projects have been undertaken for replacing fuel tanks, modifying waste disposal systems, and performing remedial programs. Corporate compliance audits accurately identify and categorize a property/business owner's needs and relates them to a business' financial capabilities.
Environmental auditing has emerged as a common tool used by regulated entities to oversee compliance assurance programs. It is an activity of verification; a comparison of outcomes against expectations. Audits verify the performance of people and systems which are intended to promote compliance with environmental requirements, corporate policies, and compliance assurance procedures.
The United States Department of Justice now provides sanctions against criminal prosecution for individuals/firms who uncover information reflecting non-compliance to the environmental regulations as the result of an environmental audit. The motivation behind conducting site audits can be summarized as follows:
• To protect the health and safety of employees;
• To protect the company from liability claims by tenants, or customers for health risks associated with an environmental problem;
• To protect the company from the expenses associated wit the cleanup of a property; and,
• To ensure the marketability of a property for future transactions.
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