GN 1.3: Environmental aspects and impacts
Guidance Note purpose
The purpose of this Guidance Note is to guide asset managers, property managers and facilities managers in undertaking an environmental aspect and impact assessment in relation to real estate.
Context
An environmental aspect and impact assessment is a central component of the process of managing environmental risk. When applied to real estate, the assessment involves evaluating the way in which the activities associated with a property interact with, and impact on, the environment.
BS EN ISO 14001:20151, which provides a leading certification standard for Environmental Management Systems, provides the following definitions:
- Environmental aspect: An element of an organisation’s activities, products or services that interacts, or can interact, with the environment.
- Environmental impact: A change to the environment, either adverse or beneficial, wholly or partly resulting from an organisation’s aspects.
In simple terms, an environmental aspect and impact assessment relates to the cause (aspect) of a change and the effect (impact) of a change to the environment.
Example of environmental aspect and impact

Importance
The process of undertaking an environmental aspect and impact assessment enables the identification and prioritisation of environmental risks and supports understanding about the extent to which these risks are effectively managed.
Developing and implementing an environmental aspect and impact helps to ensure that environmental risks are considered consistently across all activities associated with a property and, where relevant, throughout a portfolio.
The assessment process brings key property stakeholders together to determine the cause and effects associated with environmental risks. This helps to identify the appropriate risk owners, who should be responsible for developing risk control measures.
An aspect and impact assessment provide an important step in connecting the various component parts of environmental risk management. It provides a structured, end-to-end method to populating an environmental risk register, along with an evidence-based approach to explaining how and why the selected risks have been chosen.
Demonstrating the effective implementation of an aspect and impact assessment is a requirement for certification to Environmental Management System Standard ISO 14001.
Responsibilities & Interests
The table below summarises the key activities associated with collating and evaluating environmental risks, and highlights where asset managers, property managers and facilities managers are likely to have a responsibility or specific interest.
- AM - Asset Manager
- PM - Property Manager
- FM - Facilities Manager
Step 1: Design an aspect and impact template
Stakeholder:
Step 2: Scope activities and review aspects and impacts
Stakeholder:
Step 3: Understand the context of each aspect and impact
Stakeholder:
Step 4: Evaluate the risk
Stakeholder:
Step 5: Consider risk controls and their effect on significance
Stakeholder:
Step 6: Submit significant risks to a risk register
Stakeholder:
How to
Related Guidance Notes
The following Guidance Notes contain related information:
- GN1.1: Collating and evaluating environmental risks
- GN1.2: An environmental compliance register
- GN1.4: The wider risk context
- GN1.5: Environmental risk control and assurance
- GN2.1: An asset register
- GN4.3: Air conditioning inspections
- GN4.8: Template action plan
- GN4.9: Energy efficiency opportunities
- GN5.1: Leak inspections
- GN5.4: Water efficiency opportunities
- GN 6.4: Waste management opportunities
- GN7.1: Sustainable transport opportunities
- GN 8.2: Social value opportunities
- GN 8.3: Incorporating social value within the supply chain
- GN11.2: Engaging occupiers
- GN12.1: Biodiversity baseline
- GN13.2: Health and wellbeing opportunities