ISO14000 is a collective name given by the Technology Committee No.207 (TC207) of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), referring to a series of international standards for environmental supervision, stipulated in 1993. It differs from other environmental emission standards and products' technical standards stipulated respectively in each country in the way that it is an international standard.

It functions to unify administrative efforts for all organizations in industry, commerce and government worldwide to improve the environment. It consists of seven parts such as an Environmental Management System (EMS), Environmental Performance Evaluation (EPE), Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Environmental Management (EM), and Environmental Aspects in Product Standards (EAPS) and so on. It has 100 standard numbers, ranging from 14001 to 14100.

On April 1 1997, the China State Bureau of Technical Supervision officially declared that the five international standards: ISO14001, ISO14004, ISO14010, ISO14011 and ISO14012, are equal to our national standards GB/T24001, GB/T24004, GB/T24010, GB/T24011, and GBT24012. The five standards and their brief introductions are as follows:

(1) ISO14001（GB/T24001-1996）Environmental Management System - criteria and application guide criteria.

The standard stipulates the requirements of an environmental management system. It also describes what is required to certify or register the environmental management system of an organization and (or) self-manifest the capability of carrying out objective monitoring. Through the implementation of this standard, the organization concerned can be assured that it has established a complete environmental management system.

(2) ISO14004（GB/T24004-1996）Environmental Management System - theory, system and comprehensive guide of technical backup.

The standard explains the important factors in the environmental management system. It offers the organizations the suggestions in terms of establishing, improving and maintaining an effective environmental management system. Therefore, it is a tool and a textbook, guiding the enterprises to establish and improve the environmental management system.

(3) ISO14010（GB/T24010-1996）Environmental Monitoring Guide - general principles.

The standard stipulates the general principles in environmental monitoring, including terms and definitions concerning environmental monitoring. Any organization, inspection and environmental monitoring activity in which the client participates in, in order to verify and help improve his/her performance on environmental protection, should adopt the practices recommended in this guide.

The standard stipulates the procedure of planning and implementing the monitoring of the environmental management system so as to determine whether it reaches the monitoring standard of the environmental management system. It contains items such as the purpose, the function and the responsibility of monitoring the environmental management system as well as the process of monitoring and the writing of the monitoring report, etc.

(4) ISO14012（GB/T24012-1996）Environmental Management Monitoring Guide - the qualifications required for an environmental management inspector.

The standard stipulates the qualifications required for group leaders of environmental management inspection teams, including the education, work experience, training, quality and ability of the individuals, as well as how to maintain their ability and act ethically.

(5) The series of standards centering on ISO14001, develops gradually according to the organizations' products and services and forms an overall and complete evaluating method. Hopefully, the series of standards offers all the countries and environmental management departments worldwide a complete set of systems to fulfill scientific management and it embodies the ideology and methodology of environmental management under the market economy.