In August, ISO published the new ISO 14002-3:2026, Environmental management systems — Guidelines for using ISO 14001 to address environmental aspects and conditions within an environmental topic area — Part 3: Climate, dedicated to the integration of climate issues into Environmental Management Systems (EMS).The standard provides guidance to organizations to identify and address climate-related environmental aspects and environmental conditions, together with related risks and opportunities , using the ISO 14001 framework.
The publication comes just months after the new ISO 14001:2026 standard, which strengthens the focus on current environmental priorities, including climate change, biodiversity, and resource efficiency.
Mitigation and adaptation: the two perspectives
ISO 14002-3 addresses climate change from two complementary perspectives: mitigation and adaptation.Mitigation is about the organization's contribution to climate change and the actions that can be taken to limit it .
The adaptation perspective instead considers the effects that climate change can have on the organization, its activities and the value chain.
It is therefore a question of considering a double relationship: the effects of the organization on the climate and the effects of climate change on the organization.
This latter perspective is increasingly important for business continuity : climate change can in fact pose physical and transitional threats to activities and value chains.
What does ISO 14002-3 provide?
The new standard helps organizations to include the climate variable in the processes already foreseen by their Environmental Management System.In particular, it supports companies in:
- identify climate-related environmental aspects associated with your activities, products and services;
- understand climate-related environmental conditions that may affect the organization;
- identify and evaluate the resulting risks and opportunities;
- address the climate issue in terms of both mitigation and adaptation;
- integrate these assessments into the Environmental Management System processes;
- consider activities, products, and services over which the organization can exercise control or influence, adopting a life cycle perspective.
The connection with ISO 14001:2026
ISO 14002-3 is of particular interest in the context of the new ISO 14001:2026, published in April 2026.The new edition of ISO 14001 further clarifies the relationship between organizations and the environment, requiring consideration of both the environmental impacts generated by the organization and the way in which environmental conditions can influence its activities and results.
Conditions to be specifically taken into consideration include climate change, biodiversity, ecosystems and resource availability.
ISO 14002-3 therefore offers specific support for translating this attention to climate into the concrete application of the Environmental Management System.
What it means for ISO 14001 certified companies
ISO 14002-3 is a guideline and does not introduce a new certification scheme .The reference for Environmental Management System certification remains ISO 14001.
For certified companies, however, the new standard can represent a useful tool for:
- review the business context , checking which climatic conditions may impact the organization;
- update the assessment of environmental aspects , considering those connected to climate in a more structured manner;
- identify climate risks and opportunities , also in relation to business continuity and the value chain;
- define mitigation and adaptation actions consistent with your context and environmental objectives;
- integrate climate change more fully into EMS planning and continuous improvement.