Evolution of the cluster approach to the EMAS regulation in Italy

"One of the main methods for the implementation of sustainable development at the firm level is the application of environmental management systems (EMSs), voluntary tools adopted by organisations in order to continuously improve their environmental performance. Since the late nineties the implementation and application of EMSs to clusters of organisations became an increasingly interesting topic both at the EU and national level. Productive clusters have since been identified as the optimal testing ground for the implementation of environmental voluntary tools for the shared management of environmental issues by the local stakeholders.. The starting point of the local approach to EMSs has started with the enactment of the second version of the EMAS Regulation (EC Reg n.761\/2001) and of some EU decisions. The latest version of the EMAS Regulation (EC Reg. 1221\/2009) has introduced a cluster approach to environmental management which formally recognizes the importance of exploiting and diffusing the synergies between different actors in the local context.. Due to the importance of the clusters in the Italian productive structure, the Ecolabel and Ecoaudit Committee, the Italian competent body for EMAS, with two Position papers issued in 2005 and 2011, has introduced the possibility for clusters to receive an EMAS Certificate (Attestato EMAS), that shows the commitment of all stakeholders for the sustainable management of an area.