What does Environmental Management Consist of?

Question Posed By Nadia Storm; Johannesburg; South Africa

Environmental management is not, as the phrase could suggest, the management of the environment as such, but rather the management of interaction by the modern human societies with, and impact upon the environment. The three main issues that affect managers are those involving politics (networking), programs (projects), and resources (money, facilities, etc.). The need for environmental management can be viewed from a variety of perspectives. A more common philosophy and impetus behind environmental management is the concept of carrying capacity. Simply put, carrying capacity refers to the maximum number of organisms a particular resource can sustain. The concept of carrying capacity, whilst understood by many cultures over history, has its roots in Malthusian theory. Environmental management is therefore not the conservation of the environment solely for the environment's sake, but rather the conservation of the environment for humankind's sake.

Environmental management involves the management of all components of the bio-physical environment, both living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic). This is due to the interconnected and network of relationships amongst all living species and their habitats. The environment also involves the relationships of the human environment, such as the social, cultural and economic environment with the bio-physical environment.


As with all management functions, effective management tools, standards and systems are required. An 'environmental management standard or system or protocol attempts to reduce environmental impact as measured by some objective criteria. The ISO 14001 standard is the most widely used standard for environmental risk management and is closely aligned to the European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). As a common auditing standard, the ISO 19011 standard explains how to combine this with quality management.

It really is a little bit of everything. I enjoy EVERY moment and Love every aspect. You need to know something and a lot about so many different fields. Legislation; Climate; Management; Logistics; Chemicals; Microbiology; Biochemistry; Human Nature; Public Particiaption. You need to be good at maths. It brings in elements of statistics; and one minute you are spending 5 days straight writing a report and the nest week you are flying off to some country whos name you cant even pronounce to make sure they arent contaminating the water. You get to deal with farmers and get your boots muddy then wash up and walk into an executive meeting where you need to tell someone how NOT to loose millions of dollars while saving the environment. 
 
I really love my career and I WOULD NEVER trade it for anything. I would only develop it.