The ISO/Committee for Conformity Assessment (CASCO) has added a reference to “climate change” within all management systems standards operating according to Annex SL.
They have stated that this is a clarification rather than a new requirement. Therefore, the publication year of the affected Annex SL standards will not change. As a ‘clarification,’ there is no transition period for the Amendment, which effectively is applicable from the date of publication in February 2024.
The amendment, called Amendment 1:2024, Climate action changes, provides for the modification of clauses 4.1 and 4.2 of the related standards as follows (the added text is in bold):
4.1 Understanding the organization and its context:
- The organization shall determine whether climate change is a relevant issue.
4.2 Understanding the needs and expectations of interested parties:
- NOTE: Relevant interested parties can have requirements related to climate change.
Although the overall intent of the requirements for clauses 4.1 and 4.2 are unchanged, the inclusions ensure that “climate change” is now considered within the management system and as an external factor important enough for organizations to consider. Note that the term ‘climate change’ has not been defined, and consequently, every organization may define it for themselves. Their certification body will be obliged to audit them on that basis. Contrary to what some opinion leaders have already suggested, there is no requirement for sustainability within the supply change to be considered.
The affected Standards
All standards based on Annex SL (that is, using the HLS, High-Level Structure) are affected. These include:
- ISO 9001, which now becomes ISO 9001:2015, Amd 1:2024
- ISO 14001, which now becomes ISO 14001:2015, Amd 1:2024
- ISO 27001, which now becomes ISO 27001:2022, Amd 1:2024
- ISO 45001, which now becomes ISO 45001:2018, Amd 1:2024
Management system standards not Based on Annex SL, such as ISO 13485 and ISO 17025, are unaffected by this Amendment.
What Certification Bodies will expect
Certified Bodies will ensure that Auditees have considered “climate change” aspects and risks in developing, maintaining, and effectively implementing their management system(s).
“Climate change” and related issues should be determined to be relevant and, if so, considered in evaluating risk within the scope of the management systems standard.
Where organizations operate management systems to more than one Standard (e.g., ISO 9001 and ISO 14001), they must ensure that “climate change,” if determined to be relevant, is considered within the scope of each management system.
Certification Bodies are not expected to issue revised certificates as a consequence of the publication of Amendment 1.
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