RC14001 was originally developed by the American Chemistry Council for use by its members and Responsible Care Partners as part of its Responsible Care certification process and reflects ACC program priorities (e.g., Security, Product Safety, etc.). The RC14001 Technical Specification combines the elements of the American Chemistry Council’s (“ACC”) Responsible Care initiative with those of the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System, adopted by the International Organization for Standardization (“ISO”) in 1996 and as amended in 2015. RC14001 enables a company to obtain, through an application and audit process, a certification that its management system conforms to both the ISO 14001 standard and a broader scope of Responsible Care elements. For ACC’s members and Responsible Care Partners, RC14001 certification, in accordance with established requirements, allows them to meet the Council’s certification requirements.

This Technical Specification document consists of the actual text of ISO 14001 and additional text in corresponding “boxed” sections. These boxed sections include the additional Responsible Care elements required under the RC14001 scope. ACC believes that the use of this Technical Specification can assist organizations in achieving the desirable goals and objectives set forth in both Responsible Care and ISO 14001.

While originally developed by ACC for use by its companies, RC14001 is applicable and available on a worldwide basis to organizations regardless of their operations. ACC encourages the use of RC14001 if it meets an organization’s business needs. Organizations outside the ACC membership seeking RC14001 certification must conform to the requirements set forth in ACC’s procedure documents. Certification bodies seeking to provide RC14001 certification must likewise conform to the requirements set forth in the ACC procedures and obtain accreditation from a designated accreditation body.

An organization which obtains RC14001 certification may identify itself as being “RC14001 certified” within the scope of its management system. RC14001 certification does not confer any rights to use the Responsible Care logo or to identify the organization as a “Responsible Care” entity. Use of the Responsible Care logo and name are restricted to companies which meet the Responsible Care membership and program requirements established by national and regional chemical federations. A listing of chemical federations with recognized Responsible Care programs can be found in Annex C. Membership in one of these national or regional chemical federations does not necessarily mean that the organization is a participant in Responsible Care and eligible to use the name and logo.

RC14001:2023 cancels and replaces RC14001:2015 which has been technically revised.