Activity – an action that contributes or results in a product or a service.

Aspect - an element of an organization’s activities, products or services that has the potential to affect the environment.

Audit - is a systematic process that involves evaluating if an EMS is performing as intended by the organization.

Command and Control – is the process of involves enacting laws and enforcing them to prevent and control pollution.

Compliance – fulfilling requirements or conforming to official demands.

Component – a constituent part or an ingredient.

Constraint – a restriction.

Feedback – useful output information fed back to correct the input of a process.

Input – information or materials going into a process.

ISO – International Organization for Standardization, a network of national standards institutes of a number of countries that has developed a number of standards on various aspects of business and commerce that benefit consumers and society.

Mechanism – something (technique, person, tool, etc.) used to activate a process to achieve the desired result.

Objective – an environmental goal based on the environmental policy of the organization.

Organization – an entity such as a company or a school that exists for a purpose.

Output – information or materials that results from a process.

Policy – a course of action established by a body such as the government, organization, or a group.

Pollution Prevention - is defined as “source reduction – preventing or reducing waste where it originates, at the source – including practices that conserve natural resources by reducing or eliminating pollutants through increased efficiency in the use of raw materials, energy, water, and land.” [Coglianese & Nash, 2001]

Process – a series of activities that result in an output.

Regulation – a rule established by an official body such as the government.

Reviews – a critical evaluation or examination.

Scope – the extent of a problem to address for solving.

System - a number of components that interact with one another to accomplish a goal or a purpose.

Subsystem – a major part of a system.

Target – a goal based on the environmental objectives of the organization for controlling particular impacts.

Note: The definitions of the above terms were compiled from several sources including EPA’s website, Merriam-Webster dictionary, and references listed under Resources.