Development of the EMAS sectoral reference documents on best environmental management practice

This report aims to describe how the EMAS Sectoral Reference Documents on best environmental management practise are developed. Firstly, the EMAS regulation and the legal background of the documents are introduced. Afterwards, the main elements included in such documents (best environmental management practices, environmental performance indicators and benchmarks of excellence) are described and some examples are provided. The outputs of the process, namely the Sectoral Reference Documents and the JRC Scientific and Policy Reports on best environmental management practice are then outlined, together with the role played in developing the documents by the different actors involved: JRC/IPTS, the Technical Working Group and the EMAS Committee. An in-depth presentation of the methodology used, introducing the frontrunner approach and how information is gathered and drafted, allows the reader to have a complete picture of the process for developing the EMAS Sectoral Reference Documents. Finally, the report presents the lessons learnt so far, the dissemination activities carried out and the list of reports already available