Newly published ISO 14034:2016, Environmental management – Environmental technology verification (ETV) aims to help companies developing innovative environmental technologies reach new markets.
ISO 14034 provides independent verification of the performance of new environmental technologies to help manufacturers prove that their performance claims are reliable. The standard also aims to help technology purchasers identify innovations that suit their needs.
ISO 14034 features specific sections on verification principles, accepted testing practices, and reporting requirements.
Benefits of ISO 14034 include:
- Creating a level playing field for technological innovators.
- Promoting harmony in the ETV process across international boundaries.
- Providing a credible, independent assessment of environmental technologies.
- Enabling informed decision making when identifying and selecting suitable technologies.
- Achieving sustainable environmental targets.
Benoit Desforges, convenor of the working group responsible for the development of ISO 14034, shared insight into the new standard in an interview with ISO.
“New environmental technologies can make a significant difference in terms of resource and cost savings, but often face serious market obstacles because they are innovations which, by definition, are not yet able to demonstrate a successful track record,” Desforges told ISO. “ETV aims to change this by providing verified evidence to confirm the performance claim of the environmental technology and differentiate the innovation from other competing technologies.”
Desforges said ISO 14034 will first and foremost be used to inform independent verifiers on how to conduct quality-assured verification of an environmental technology.
“ETV helps technology vendors provide objective and trustful data on the performance of an innovative environmental technology,” Desforges told ISO. “For technology buyers and investors, ETV is a reliable source of information on which to base purchasing decisions and better manage technology and investment risks. Finally, ETV provides policy makers, regulators and other stakeholders with clear information on the performance achievable by new environmental technologies.”