ISO 14001 about the standard

BS EN ISO 14001:2004 what does it mean?
Well to give it its full title take a look below:

BS = British Standard, 
EN = Norme Européenne /Europäische Norm, (European Standard)
ISO = International Organisation for Standardisation, 
14001 = The standard's number e.g 14001 
2004 = date of publication and revision year e.g. 2004)

So what is ISO 14001:2004 ?

ISO 14001:2004 is principally a world wide recognised set of rules which companies implement with the aim of managing environmental issues and aspects associated with their company to enable them to reduce their environmental footprint on society.

ISO 14001:2004 forms part of a family of ISO 14000 standards, documents and guidelines; there are a large number of these associated documents that have been created to inform and increase companies' understanding of the requirements to continually improve their business models and reduce pollution from their company.

In November 2004, the International Organisation for Standardisation introduced a revised set of Environmental Management Standards based on the ISO 14001:1996 standard. The new standard is based on a process model and new emphasis has been placed on Evaluation of

Environmental Legal Compliance and harmonisation to other older established standards such as ISO 9001:2000. - ISO 14001:2004 is predominately based on 4 key documents:
1. ISO 9000:2005      Quality Management Systems - Fundamentals and Vocabulary (adapted for Environmental use)
2. ISO 14001:2004    Environmental Management Systems - requirements with guidance for use
3. ISO 14004:2004    Environmental Management Systems - General Guidelines on Principles, Systems and supporting techniques
4. ISO 19011:2011    Guidelines for Auditing Management Systems

Where can I find these standards? 
To purchase copies of the above standards please follow the links below:
1.    Your National Standards Body:  www.iso.org/iso/en/aboutiso/isomembers/index.html 
2.    From the International Organisation for Standardisation:  www.iso.org

Further information about ISO 14001 and related standards?
To find further information about ISO 9001 and related standards follow the links below:
1.    The United Kingdom Accreditation Service: www.ukas.org 
2.    Your National Standards Body:  www.iso.org/iso/en/aboutiso/isomembers/index.html
3.    From the International Organisation for Standardisation:  www.iso.org