What is Eco-Lighthouse?

Basic information in English

 

  

 

Idea, target group and values

 

The Eco-Lighthouse Foundation offers environmental certification that helps private and public enterprises conduct profitable and environmental-friendly operations.

 

Our target groups are private and public enterprises, especially small and medium-sized businesses. Businesses and enterprises that perform an environmental analysis and then meet defined industry criteria are certified as Eco-Lighthouses. Eco-Lighthouse is a Norwegian public certificate. The scheme is supported and recommended by the Ministry of the Environment. Our partners are consultants, certifiers, municipalities, county administrations, and state and business organizations.

 

All of our actions must be profitable, specific, relevant and simple for our customers.

 

Profitable 
Out actions must be profitable on several levels. What we do must benefit the business' finances, the employees' health, the business' local community, and the global environment. Environmental operations are valuable.

 

Specific
Our actions are specific and measurable. Our customers must be taught how to carry out and check the actions.

 

Relevant 
We have relevant expertise, and initiate processes that improve the finances and climate accounts of each business. Our actions are not general, but are adapted to each business and industry.

 

Simple 
Environmental improvements are not something we do for the environment alone; we do it for people. Our solutions are effective, practical and user-friendly.

 

 

Who can be certified?

 

The Eco-Lighthouse is a certification scheme for use on the enterprise level. In principle, whole enterprises are certified. If a whole entrprise is not certified, information must be provided as to what has been certified, and what has been exempt from certification. The certifier is responsible for this information being provided on the certificate.

 

In principle, the Eco-Lighthouse is available to all private and public enterprises. There are no restrictions on certifying enterprises, based on their type, or the number of employees. The Eco-Lighthouse industry criteria have primarily been developed for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the private sector (up to 100 employees) and for public enterprises. However, the Eco-Lighthouse is also suitable for use at larger businesses with simple environmental challenges. Large businesses with complex environmental challenges should seek ISO 14001 certification and/or EMAS registration. The Swan eco-label is an alternative in certain industries.

 

The following principles must be applied if the Eco-Lighthouse is intended for use in large enterprises and complex organizations:

 

  • One certificate per operating unit will normally be issued for large businesses with independent operating units.
  • At minimum one certification per municipality when an enterprise has operating units in several municipalities. The enterprises can also be divided into several certifications.

 

This principle can be departed from in special cases, following prior agreement with the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation. Considerations of appropriateness and the business' wishes will be given weight in such assessments.

 

 

Daily operation of the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation

 

The daily operation of the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation is performed by the administration in Kristiansand. Morten Leuch Elieson is the managing director.

 

The administration must:

 

  • Contribute to actively stimulating environmental efforts across the country. Be a catalyst for activity in municipalities; not least by providing assistance to Eco-Lighthouse consultants.
  • Guide and assist all users of the scheme.
  • Contribute to regional municipal cooperation. Important actors are intermunicipal businesses, county administrations, regional boards, etc.
  • Provide instruction for consultants and certifiers.
  • Draw up industry criteria in collaboration with consultants, businesses and industrial organizations. Revise and quality assure industry criteria. (Formal approval of industry criteria has been delegated to the administration by the Board)
  • Lead the professional development of the Eco-Lighthouse scheme in accordance with decisions by the Board of the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation.

 

 

Local distribution of roles

 

The municipalities

 

Each municipality must make a decision on the political level to commit to having an Eco-Lighthouse officer, to have enough certifiers, and to pay an annual municipal licence. Municipalities will either set up local Eco-Lighthouse offices or collaborate with neighbouring municipalities to organize necessary functions like certification of enterprises and marketing of the scheme. In municipalities with both a business officer and an environment officer, it will be natural for these two people to collaborate on marketing the Eco-Lighthouse scheme.
 
Consultants

 

Consultants recruit enterprises; often in collaboration with municipalities.
Consultants guide businesses through an environmental analysis. An environmental status and action plan are written together with the enterprises. When the business is ready for certification, the home municipality is contacted for certification. However, it is important that the consultant checks in advance that the home municipality's relationship with the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation is clear.
 
The enterprises

 

All enterprises must use a consultant who has taken a consultant course organized by the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation. The work towards certification usually takes 2 to 6 months. During this period, the business and consultant will review environmental topics like HSE, procurement, waste, energy, transportation, etc. The price is normally agreed between the enterprise and the consultant.
 
Enterprises that are certified can achieve a number of benefits. These include: saving money on operations, a constant commitment to HSE and the working environment, becoming a more attractive bidder on private and public Tenders, documentation for all customers, and documentation that meets the requirements in the National Enterprise Registers and the Environmental Information Act.
 
Enterprises that are interested in Eco-Lighthouse certification can contact an Eco-Lighthouse consultant, environmental officer in the home municipality or can directly contact the Eco-Lighthouse Foundation in Kristiansand.

Stiftelsen Miljofyrtarn ©2012