This section introduces measurement of environmental performance, with examples of measurement concepts and different types of measures.

Introduction

Measurement is an essential component of environmental programs, whether it is a business evaluating their environmental practices and progress, or technical assistance providers and public agencies evaluating the effectiveness of their environmental assistance and pollution prevention (P2) programs. Efforts go well beyond compliance metrics, and on to P2, sustainability, lean and productivity, and greenhouse gas metrics.

Measured environmental results help a host of different audiences to:

• Understand internal or supplier operations; what's working and what's not working
• Assess effectiveness and progress of environmental programs and initiatives
• Make sound decisions based on measured information and trends
• Correlate pollution or waste to lost opportunity or lost profit
• Prioritize and implement effective environmental improvements
• Understand the status and health of the environment and ecosystems, from local to global
• Benchmark against other companies' or agencies' environmental performance
• Translate or calculate impacts into meaningful messages

Establishing a useful, telling environmental measurement system is challenging. No single approach is suitable for all situations. Careful design and evolution of a system is required to ensure the results:

• are meaningful yet not superfluous
• support and drive an organization's or program's strategic objectives
• provide the information needed to manage and grow a business or program
• are aligned across a business or agency
• (for facilities) are attributable to focused environmental improvement efforts vs. other factors such as a downturn in the economy
• (for P2 programs and agencies) are attributable to the agency's P2 outreach efforts vs. self-initiated efforts by clients or businesses

What Gets Measured?

"What gets measured gets managed" is an old Total Quality Management adage. It also often holds true that what gets measured gets changed.

Measurement activities consume time and resources, so it is best to devote attention to measure metrics that matter. "What metrics matter" may be gleaned from environmental goals and targets, a strategic plan, compliance performance, liability issues, or other business initiatives. Because drivers are different for every organization or program, the data or information needed varies greatly.

As examples, agency or municipality outreach and assistance programs may want to measure how their activities and products have resulted in positive environmental changes among the organizations they targeted. These programs may also attempt to assess a big picture change, such as improved water or air quality in a region to which their activities have contributed. A facility or business, on the other hand, may want to track more quantifiable, results-oriented accomplishments, such as reductions in energy and water use, reductions in releases and discharges, reductions in material consumption and non-product output, and improved product performance and output.

"What matters" also varies by the level at which measurement is occurring, for instance, measuring at the process or project level is vastly different than measuring at a community or global level. Examples of different levels of measurement, in increasing scope, are:

Process or Project < Facility < Organization < P2 Program < Community < Ecosystem < Global