In 2010, the United Nations (UN) formally declared that access to clean water and safe sanitation are fundamental human rights. Aligned to this, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal SDG 6 states that everyone should have access to safe sanitation by 2030. This, in turn, would eliminate open defecation, which billions must still endure. According to the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation, the official United Nations mechanism tasked with monitoring progress towards SDG 6, 2.3 billion people lack any form of sanitation at all, whilst over two hundred million tonnes of human waste go untreated each year.

In the developed world, most if not all people take advanced, interconnected sewerage and wastewater treatment systems for granted, whilst in the developing world, 90 % of sewage ends up in lakes, rivers and oceans. This causes pollution which creates a health hazard for animals, plants and people. “Sixty per cent of the human race does not have access to safely managed sanitation,” reveals Sun Kim, a Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Chair of project committee ISO/PC 318, in charge of developing a standard for community-scale sanitation systems.

Moreover, clean water and sanitation are closely connected since uncontrolled sewage frequently contaminates water resources, with often devastating consequences. “If we don’t have safe sanitation, then clean water will get tainted,” observes Kim. Shockingly, 1.8 billion people globally use a source of drinking water contaminated with faeces. Hence, it is not surprising that, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), unclean water and poor sanitation are the world’s second biggest killer of children. So how can we solve this conundrum?

Non-sewered solutions

Building conventional types of interconnected sewers and waste treatment systems is one answer to the problem, yet these require huge amounts of money and time to build – two resources that are not so easily available in the developing world. Is there a way to create non-sewered systems that do all the things these big systems do without the cost and infrastructure? “We believe the answer is yes,” says Sun Kim. In fact, ISO and the Gates Foundation are achieving this together through the work of ISO/PC 318, whose secretariat is held by the national standards bodies of the United States and Senegal under an ISO twinning arrangement.

Villagers line up with plastic canisters to get safe water from a public water well in Nyarusiza, Uganda.

Managed sanitation systems without interconnected sewers are known as non-sewered sanitation systems. Following significant support from the Gates Foundation, ISO began by developing International Workshop Agreements (IWAs) on the subject. The Gates Foundation promotes and sponsors research and investment in areas such as education, agriculture, global health and sanitation for the developing world, whilst ISO can help get targeted specifications to market in less than a year using the fast-track process offered by an IWA.

Although IWAs often evolve into fully fledged ISO standards, they provide much-needed solutions in the meantime. The ISOfocus (#126) of January/February 2018 already described the work on IWA 24, which specifies general safety and performance requirements for the design and testing of non-sewered sanitation systems. It then served as the basis for ISO 30500, an International Standard for small-scale, safe, self-contained and self-sufficient toilets complete with faecal treatment, that came out towards the end of last year.

ISO/PC 318, meanwhile, developed IWA 28 for community-​scale systems that can treat the waste from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of people using stand-alone toilets that function “off the grid”. IWA 28 specifies requirements for the design, performance, testing, certification and operation of independent, self-contained and energy self-sufficient units known as faecal sludge treatment units (FSTUs). ISO/PC 318 is now in the process of converting IWA 28 into an ISO standard, the future ISO 31800.

Framing the technology

But before we reach that milestone, let’s take a look at the history behind this IWA. After developing the concept of FSTUs, the Gates Foundation approached researchers and industry to give shape to the idea. “We worked with TÜV SÜD to create a private standard for FSTUs, which we then proposed as a seed document for ISO 31800,” explains Kim. TÜV SÜD is a German engineering and technology organization which specializes in performance testing for technology development, verification and certification.

ISO/PC 318 developed IWA 28 for areas with sizeable populations such as larger towns and cities. Many urban areas in the developing world might have rudimentary systems to collect and transport large amounts of faecal material but may lack the means to treat the waste, with the result that it is then dumped into the environment. IWA 28 describes the processes, procedures, specifications and test procedures underpinning the equipment that can deal with the faecal sludge safely, reliably, sustainably and efficiently.

In essence, IWA 28 provides a framework that dovetails with the circular economy and embodies them both safely and sustainably. To that end, IWA 28 specifies requirements to ensure that there are the means in place to receive, store and then process faecal sludge in the FSTU. The minimum requirements include the need to use the faecal material as a fuel and for energy recovery, together with controls and limits on any air emissions, odour, noise and effluent. There are also requirements for the end products of process, for example when the treated faecal sludge is converted to material that farmers can use as a fertilizer.

For its part, “ISO 31800 is ‘technology agnostic’ and not specific to any one technology, such as sludge combustion, anaerobic digestion or other forms of biological or thermal system,” adds Kim. “We even have a research partner developing a technology that uses supercritical water oxidation. It depends on what is suitable for the environmental conditions, as long as the design of FSTU uses faeces as a fuel to kill pathogens, using the calorific value of the faecal sludge,” he adds.

All-in-one treatment

The engineering firm Sedron Technologies from the USA is represented in ISO/PC 318 and developed the first prototype FSTU that evolved in synergy with IWA 28. Known as the “Omni Processor”, this technology uses sewage sludge as a fuel to both dry the sludge and then complete the process within the FSTU. This unique technology is fast on its way to revolutionizing the waste-processing industry. For example, a pilot plant was installed in Dakar, Senegal, in 2015 and has been successfully operating at that location ever since.

The aim now is to create standards to support a variety of technologies, in the hopes of replicating the Dakar success story. IWA 28 specifies very stringent requirements for process control, functionality, environmental impacts and certification. So what is the rationale for this? “The idea is to strike a balance between technical requirements to ensure pathogens are neutralized, together with the likelihood of acceptance in as many countries as possible, and supporting local customers such as utilities, governments and businesses,” explains Kim.

The forthcoming ISO 31800 will also help ensure that the performance of FSTUs is maintained for the long haul. “While the standard is written for the initial evaluation of manufactured FSTUs, elements of the performance requirements could be used to monitor the system’s long-term performance too,” he adds.

It’s a winner!

In many ways, the concept of an FSTU is a win-win, with the means to provide sanitation for areas that lack sewers connected to sewage treatment plants. There are also environmental benefits; as well as eliminating water pollution caused by untreated faecal sludge, FSTUs will also reduce climate change impacts. This is because untreated sewage ferments and then releases methane, which is a very powerful greenhouse gas – thirty times more powerful than carbon dioxide. “Instead of methane emissions produced from the natural anaerobic digestion of faecal sludge, direct treatment and conversion to carbon dioxide would have less impact on climate change. Also, since the carbon dioxide emissions would primarily be from consumed food, they are part of the ongoing carbon cycle and not a release of carbon previously locked in fossil fuels,” explains Kim.

“We believe that an FSTU is better from a pathogen perspective, better from an environmental perspective, and when compared with letting the faecal material digest uncontrolled, it is also better from a greenhouse gas perspective,” emphasizes Kim.

But such solutions must be economically viable too, or manufacturers and potential users will not embrace them. So ISO 31800 will also provide a foundation for economic sustainability by providing the frameworks for testing and certification in addition to specifications for efficient, effective and economic operability. These factors, in turn, will give confidence to the buyers, operators and users of FSTUs. “From our perspective, sustainability has many different aspects. But for this standard to be far-reaching, it really must support viable businesses,” concludes Kim. And based on the experiences in Dakar, ISO 31800 has a strong potential to succeed.

Just a decade ago, the term “green business strategy” evoked visions of fringe environmentalism and a high cost for minimal good. Recently, however, a new common wisdom has emerged that promises the ultimate reconciliation of environmental and economic concerns.

This new vision sounds great, yet is it realistic? ISOfocus sits down with Sheila Leggett, who began her term in 2018 as Chair of ISO technical committee ISO/TC 207, Environmental management, building on a distinguished career as a biologist, ecologist, industry consultant and environmental legislator. Having served on Canada’s Natural Resources Conservation Board and, later, the National Energy Board, Leggett’s experience is broad and her knowledge detailed.

The idea that a renewed interest in environmental management will result in a more sustainable world has widespread appeal. It is not surprising that ISO/TC 207 standards are so much in demand. Their standards portfolio, after all, tries to spur innovation and create business opportunities – for the good of all. Here, Leggett gives the lowdown on environmental management, and how a strategy good for the world can also be good for your bottom line.

ISOfocus: To what extent is ISO/TC 207 on pace with green technologies? Can you tell us a bit about how the different standards contribute (particularly ISO 14034 on EVT)?

Sheila Leggett: ISO/TC 207 is system-based, which means it focuses on creating frameworks for standardization, rather than following specific green technologies. All of our work in environmental management systems is done through the lens of sustainable development.

ISO 14034, Environmental management – Environmental technology verification (ETV), is a great example of how experts within ISO/TC 207 identified a market need and developed a standard to meet current and future requirements. This environmental technology verification standard provides independent verification of the performance of new environmental technologies and allows developers to demonstrate performance of their technology to the market.

With so many different technologies in the marketplace, it was agreed that an internationally recognized performance standard would level the playing field for technological innovators, provide credible, independent assessment of environmental technologies, and result in the achievement of sustainable environmental targets. Recently published, this standard has already been adopted by 39 countries.

What are the main challenges in making sure that ISO/TC 207 standards are used throughout the world? What is the added value of participating in international events such as COP24?

In my view, the main challenge in making sure the ISO/TC 207 standards are used is raising awareness about this set of standards and illustrating the value from their application. For example, we recently heard from one company that applying the ISO 14000 family of standards to its business has helped it to develop a new product from what was previously considered waste materials. This additional product increased its market base and reduced its waste volumes.

Another challenge we see is that the uptake of ISO 14000 standards is largely dependent on geographical location. We are putting great effort into understanding why this should be the case, and what further actions we can take to encourage broader acceptance. One of our goals, therefore, is to ensure that the standards are applicable globally. We are fortunate to have strong representation from both developing and developed countries within our technical committee, as well as from countries with economies in transition.

From that perspective, the added value of participating in international events such as COP24 is the increased visibility they bring us, by showcasing standards that are directly relevant to the important policy discussions being held. The ISO/TC 207 standards are a set of tools that can be used to provide stability and certainty in the field of environmental management systems. Assessing and controlling the environmental impact of an organization’s activities, products or services is an important area of growing awareness to a broad range of organizations. Gaining exposure for the ISO 14000 standards through a wide range of events also provides us with valuable feedback on the current standards, ideas for future updates and the market need for potential additional standards within the field of environmental management systems.

To what extent has ISO/TC 207 adapted its strategy (business plan) in order to meet the market demand for greener products and services (and green sustainable development-oriented policies)?

Over the past two years, we have reviewed and updated our strategic business plan. In the process, we confirmed that ISO/TC 207 standards have a role in the sustainable growth of the economy, including green economy activity.

Our updated plan references – and was informed by – the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are designed to shift the world onto a more sustainable path in just over a decade. Of the 17 SDGs, at least 14 are directly or indirectly addressed by the scope of ISO/TC 207’s work in standardization. Part of our vision is that the implementation of the ISO 14000 standards offers a significant and positive contribution to achieving/delivering the SDGs. In setting this as part of our vision, we believe that our strategies will help meet the market demand for sustainable development, which will include greener products and services.

You have some great new projects on the go, including green financial projects and guidelines for incorporating ecodesign. Please tell us a bit about these and what future projects you will be working on.

Examples of new areas we have been working on include standards for climate adaptation and green finance, including green bonds. We are excited to be discussing potential collaborations with the recently announced technical committees ISO/TC 322 and ISO/TC 323, which are focused on sustainable finance and the circular economy, respectively. We are also having similar discussions with the International Electrotechnical Commission’s technical committee IEC/TC 111 that looks more specifically at environmental standardization for electrical and electronic products and services.

You have 85 countries participating in the work of ISO/TC 207 (with another 37 as observers). How do you all do such a good job of keeping the momentum going?

We are fortunate to have a great many countries committed to the objectives and mandate of ISO/TC 207. Spurred on by this positive energy, participating countries put forward their most dedicated experts who generously share their talents and expertise to determine, within the ISO 14000 framework, the areas that most urgently require the updating of existing standards or the development of new work. It is the commitment and dedication of some of the best minds in the field that keep our motivation alive.

In 2015, Costa Rica hit a remarkable milestone when it generated the country’s electrical power from 100 % renewable energy sources during 285 consecutive days. This was another feather in the cap for our small Central American republic, which already emerged as a leader in ecotourism in the late 1990s. The Costa Rican Institute of Electricity (ICE) has since revealed that the country had 300 days in which renewables met its entire demand for electricity, beating its own previous record.

You might be tempted to ask how a country of just 51 000 km² and five million inhabitants managed such a feat. Helped by its geographical situation and its geological and topographical conditions, Costa Rica focused on its most abundant resource: water. The country’s power mix is dominated by hydropower (75.3 %), but also includes geothermal (12.84 %), wind (10.08 %), biomass (0.77 %) and solar (0.01 %), according to ICE statistics.

Today, the various activities have been regrouped in one single policy. Under its National Strategy on Climate Change, Costa Rica is committed to becoming the first carbon-neutral country in the world. This national strategy manifests our country’s pledge to continue setting objectives for the rest of the world to follow, as we did in 1948 when we abolished the military or by being the first tropical country to reverse the deforestation process in the late 1980s.

Firm green steps

So what is carbon neutrality? It’s when the net greenhouse gas emissions a country or organization releases to the environment remain equal to zero. To realize this goal, Costa Rica aims to compensate its carbon emissions with equivalent doses of oxygen so that, when we do eventually meet our target, we can be satisfied that our country has no part in global warming or the deterioration of air quality. This commitment sweeps across all sectors of the economy, including one of our country’s most representative exports – coffee.

Since 2014, the NAMA Café project is helping to transform coffee production into a low-carbon industry. Coffee was chosen because it is one of the most important sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the agricultural sector. Among other things, some coffee mills have already introduced innovative technologies for treating pulp and husks (two waste products of coffee production) to control and avoid their methane emissions.

Some say our environmental aspirations have grown out of our fertile soils and inhabit the spirit of every Costa Rican. In fact, the right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment for all was enshrined in the Constitution by amendment in 1994. Today, our carbon neutrality goal has drawn all economic sectors in a participatory process that includes private companies, government bodies, non-governmental organizations and academia.

Standards as strategic allies

Indeed, a vital component of Costa Rica’s pledge to create a greener society is its dedication to maintaining a competitive market. To meet this goal, it has implemented programmes at both the governmental and organizational level. For example, the Instituto de Normas Técnicas de Costa Rica (INTECO), our national standards body, released a standard for organizations to follow in order to become carbon neutral.

Now in its third edition, INTE B5:2016, Standard for demonstrating carbon neutrality. Requirements, seeks to enhance organizations’ competitiveness through improved environmental performance based on good emissions management, technological advancements and optimized use of natural resources and raw materials. This standard is committed to the principles of ISO International Standards and includes references to Costa Rican adoptions of many ISO standards on greenhouse gases.

The decarbonization of society consists of activities that limit, minimize or correct environmental damage to water, air and soil, as well as problems related to waste, noise and ecosystems. This includes cleaner technologies that reduce environmental risk, pollution and resource wastage, and the use of environmentally friendly goods and services. Such a complex process required a normative framework that could integrate the economy, technology, cost, environmental issues and sustainability into one single field.

Framework for sustainability

These considerations led to the national adoption of the ISO 14064 series of standards for the quantification, monitoring and reporting of greenhouse gases, which has been instrumental in helping organizations create an inventory of their emissions. Developed by ISO’s technical committee ISO/TC 207, Environmental management, it has become an integral part of the country’s carbon neutrality programme. In line with national legislation on environmentally friendly products, Costa Rica also turned to the ISO 14020 suite of standards on environmental labelling and declarations, by the same ISO committee, which INTECO included in its portfolio by national adoption. These have had a tremendous impact on the entire field of green technologies, fostering the development of a nationwide environmental labelling programme.

These standards and others by ISO/TC 207 have contributed significantly to our carbon-neutral goal because they are practical, effective and can be used by organizations of all types and sizes at any stage of development. Although they do not directly discuss carbon neutrality, these standards highlight the importance of good environmental management for business competitiveness. They also provide a framework in which environmental actions can be continually improved to reach the country’s goals of sustainable development.

For just as Costa Rica’s demilitarization many years ago was designed to favour sustainability and development, so the decarbonization of the country’s economy serves a similar purpose. Indeed, there is increasing recognition of how a shift to renewables can act as a catalyst for sustainable development and achieving the United Nations’ Agenda 2030 and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Currently, the Costa Rican government is making big efforts in this direction. As part of this national resolution, INTECO advocates the use of globally recognized standards as essential tools to help government, industry and consumers attain these sustainable goals. Based on international consensus, they provide a solid benchmark for decision makers to have a positive impact on our environment.

Finally, ISO 50001 on energy management systems, which INTECO adopted in 2017, is another essential standard that served as the basis for developing more specific standards on energy efficiency in compliance with our national policy on energy savings. The standard’s appeal is that it will help a greater number of Costa Rican businesses implement sound energy practices, thus contributing to our overarching goal of carbon neutrality.

Carbon copy

Can Costa Rica’s model be exported elsewhere? I, for one, believe it can, but in order to do this, countries need to establish domestic policies that foster a culture in which citizens show active commitment towards achieving their environmental goals. In Costa Rica, this formula has resulted in the protection of 25.6 % of the country’s total land mass.

Environmental education has also been key to sustainable development and Costa Rica has been one of the acknowledged leaders in efforts to promote environmental learning. As so much of the social and economic support for education in Costa Rica has centred around conservation issues, environmental education has become a point of intersection between the government and the people. In fact, the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC), which comes under the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), has been working on this for years, accruing a wealth of experience on biodiversity and marine issues.

Costa Rica has specialists in many fields of biology, including biosphere, wetlands and heritage sites. Educational projects funded by public/private alliances have been equally successful in increasing national awareness. However, these projects need to be constantly evolving to have significant long-term impact.

Wind turbines stretch along a dusty road near Tierras Morenas, Guanacaste.

Challenges ahead

While Costa Rica has certainly made impressive environmental progress over the years, positioning itself as a pioneer in nature conservation, there are still many challenges ahead. For example, we need to establish a prevention, control and mitigation system for those climate change impacts that are generated by human activity. Environmental control and quality must engage a wide range of social stakeholders and all our public institutions to be truly effective.

To be fair, our efforts to coordinate the environmental agenda have increased with the creation of specialized sub-groups, but these must synchronize better with existing inter-sectorial groups. This includes a more prominent involvement of environmental groups at decision-making levels. Politicians, business leaders, teachers and other people in leadership positions must strengthen their engagement in order to gain a better understanding of the issues at stake, so they are able to participate more fully in the decision-making process.

Given the scale of the task, is the plan to transform Costa Rica’s energy dependence realistic? Ultimately, the widespread adoption of clean energy is a gradual process, but with research and development in carbon-free technologies and standards to help us, we hope one day to get rid of fossil fuels once and for all.

Perhaps an answer has come in the advent of “clean cars”. These can be defined as vehicles that are electrically propelled using either batteries or fuel cells that run on on-board hydrogen, and often a hybrid of the two. The idea of electrical cars has been mooted for years, but it is only now, with the proven effects of climate change, that enough is being done to make them a viable commercial prospect. Indeed, change is already upon us. Monthly figures published by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders suggest that electric car sales in the United Kingdom have risen significantly over the past few years. While only around 500 electric cars were registered per month during the first half of 2014, this has now risen to an average of 5 000 per month during 2018¹⁾.

Yet their production is not straightforward and many challenges face both producers and consumers before they can be considered mainstream. The first target, as Mr Yasuji Shibata, Toyota Motor Corporation’s General Manager of the Evaluation Department for Electrically Propelled Vehicles, makes clear, “is to develop the electrically propelled vehicle to the same level of performance and reliability as conventional vehicles within a reasonable budget”. Closely connected to this is the requirement to guarantee car performance that meets the customer’s needs, especially on fuel economy.

All charged up

Electric vehicles must have a standard plug-in connector to charge from standard power points.

More specifically, the performance of a single cell (the smallest electrical unit) – and a fuel-cell stack (all cells combined) – are two key areas of focus. Batteries also have two specific requirements: storage and output. Unlike the gasoline tank, the capacity of a battery changes with environmental temperature and deterioration. There is also the difference between the electricity supply in battery vehicles and (hydrogen) fuel-cell vehicles: battery electricity has a finite amount of electrical energy. The challenge is that, particularly in the case of vehicles such as lift trucks, electricity is being expended all the time. This means that there is less capability to respond to surges and needs of energy when moving items, such as lifting and taking ramps. In other words, there is a continuous loss of efficiency, and thus productivity.

However, with a fuel-cell-powered vehicle, the car or truck is able to function at 100 % capacity until the last drop of gas. Because batteries store only a finite amount of energy, there is not a great deal of range, but with hydrogen fuel cells the range is significantly higher. The difference is approximately by a factor of two at the moment, and possibly a factor of three in the near future. This is partly because a fuel-cell-powered car has more mileage and is less susceptible to environmental weather effects, with a shorter fuelling time of three to five minutes. This contrasts markedly with a Tesla-style car, which currently only manages a 20-minute refuelling time. It is likely, therefore, that a future trend will be a true hybridization of fuel-cell and battery technology.

A number of studies have suggested that it would be very easy to saturate the market with battery-operated cars, but simply replacing gasoline automobiles with battery-operated alternatives is unlikely to be as straightforward as it first sounds. There is only just enough capacity in the electrical grid to cope with such a change. With hydrogen production, the electricity variations can be balanced through the day, which is why engineering for a mix of solutions is so important. Funnelling direct renewable energy like wind or solar, or even nuclear, into the car is unlikely to work because these sources are so distant from the car itself. But with hydrogen as a fuel, electricity can be deployed at the outlet from where it is available.

A plug-in electric car refuels at a charging station by the M40 Road in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom.

Environmental friend or foe?

A word should also be said about environmental safety, and the danger of failing to distinguish between “green” and “clean” fuels. If one takes, for example, biofuel, it is certainly green – but definitely not clean. Much focus has quite rightly been placed on carbon dioxide emissions, but the two hundred or so other pollutants of an internal combustion engine in the city car have been ignored, which are significantly more detrimental to human health. Carcinogens, for instance, are very much present in a biodiesel engine exhaust and pollute as much as a regular diesel engine.

Fuel-cell cars using hydrogen as a fuel can achieve a higher overall fuel cycle (well-to-wheel) average efficiency than an internal combustion engine using a biofuel such as biodiesel. Indeed, the biggest advantage of a hydrogen-powered fuel-cell vehicle is that it only produces water and air, which are not harmful to the environment. But while it’s true that hydrogen fuel produces zero emissions, it’s also true that it doesn’t occur naturally on earth. Producing it involves processes such as electrolysis, for which electricity is needed. And all too often, that energy still comes from fossil fuels.

So how can International Standards help overcome these multifarious challenges? It goes without saying that, as with all areas of standardization, it means that the same products can be held to the same level of performance and reliability, regardless of where they are produced. It also means that the amount of resources required to develop a unique product will be reduced for each country, thereby providing environmental protection. In general, the main obstacle to international standardization is harmonization among manufacturers. After battery-powered vehicles, some countries are now shifting their focus to cars using hydrogen fuel-cell technology. There is a huge and rapidly growing market out there, so harmonization of International Standards has become a key priority.

Fuel standards

Engine of fuel-cell vehicle “Mirai ” by Toyota.

Specifically, ISO 17268 covers gaseous hydrogen land-vehicle refuelling connection devices. The hydrogen refuelling connector is standardized by this ISO standard for the countries which have a fuel-cell vehicle market. This means that consumers can obtain hydrogen from any hydrogen fuel-cell station in China, Europe, Japan, Korea, the United States and so on. ISO 23828 also relates to fuel-cell road vehicles and is used as a measurement for energy consumption for vehicles fuelled with compressed hydrogen. Fuel economy is measured by this method and is referred to in the international Global Technical Regulation GTR15. Fuel economy measured in this way will be used by governments to qualify the vehicles and manufacturers implementing this method as one indicator for improving vehicle efficiency.

Every day, obstructions like traffic lights and changing speed limits mean that the power demands of a car drivetrain vary rapidly. So do fuel-cell vehicles have the pulling power we expect? ISO 20762 has been designed to test the maximum power of a hybrid electrical vehicle (HEV) for system power. ISO 23274-1 made it possible to measure fuel consumption without the “misleading” influence of the charge level of the battery when starting from a different “state of charge”. It meant, too, that the state of charge can be tested under different cycles, loads and temperatures.

ISO technical committee ISO/TC 197, which is mandated to devise standards on hydrogen technologies, is chaired by Andrei V. Tchouvelev, one of the world’s leading experts on hydrogen safety and regulations, codes and standards. Tchouvelev has worked for 35 years in the field of hydrogen and, after moving to Canada from his native Russia, co-founded the Canadian Hydrogen Safety Program in 2003. His committee does not deal directly with cars, but has created a family of fuelling standards, so everything related to the interface between fuelling station dispenser and hydrogen-fuelled cars falls under this remit. There are general requirements and also more specific ones concerning components like the dispenser, compressor, valves, fittings and fuelling hoses.

The world’s first hydrogen-powered taxi fleet “Hype” proudly displays its logo at its launch event in 2015.

A global playing field

A number of countries have also signed up to the European Union’s Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Directive (AFID) and series of standards, of which hydrogen is one of the alternative fuel infrastructure options. The bulk of the preparatory work for the standardization base under AFID mandate was undertaken by ISO/TC 197 and examined dispensing points, fuel quality and connectors. This committee also participates in Phase 2 of the global technical regulation (GTR 13) on hydrogen and fuel-cell vehicles. It ensures that the International Standards’ requirements that the committee develops are in harmony with the global technical regulation requirements. It is complicated, though, despite there being many stakeholders working together to develop the necessary requirements for a level playing field.

“People want to move mountains now and quickly, but may lack the sufficient technical knowledge and evidence,” says Tchouvelev. There are added complications, he says, because “we live in such a fast-paced world… and the Fourth Industrial Revolution is a challenge for standardization”. There is a chicken-and-egg dilemma of sorts, he continues, of when to develop an International Standard to ensure safety and performance, yet not restrict technology, as fuel-cell cars and fuelling infrastructure have been under development now for 15 years.

The genie is out of the bottle – it’s not just passenger cars but also trains, buses and trucks, and other heavy-duty applications including marine, aviation and aerospace. For instance, a heavy-duty truck may require 80 kg of on-board storage, while a regular fuel-cell car stores about 5 kg. So now, in addition to light-duty vehicles, standards have to be developed for much higher on-board storage quantities and address the need to refuel as quickly as possible using much higher flows. Besides these capacity issues, both fuel cells and batteries face scaling challenges potentially limiting their independent larger-scale mobility applications. These include thermal and water management and increased-size balance of plant for cooling. For this reason, hybridization of fuel-cell and battery technologies may be very attractive. Requirements of manufacturers for standards to address these issues are all relatively new, and International Standards will need to continue apace with developments for fuel-cell and battery electric vehicles to find their way permanently to our streets.

1) Next greencar, “Electric car market statistics” (accessed February 2019)

Developed by stakeholders from all sectors of the cocoa industry, including representatives from both countries where the cocoa is grown and markets where it is consumed, the ISO 34101 series aims to encourage the professionalization of cocoa farming, thus contributing to farmer livelihoods and better working conditions. It covers the organizational, economic, social and environmental aspects of cocoa farming as well as featuring strict requirements for traceability, offering greater clarity about the sustainability of the cocoa that is used.

ISO 34101-1, Sustainable and traceable cocoa – Part 1: Requirements for cocoa sustainability management systems, aims to help users implement effective practices to allow them to continually improve their business. Part 2, which deals with performance requirements, specifies economic, social and environmental criteria, while Part 3 contains the requirements for traceability of sustainably produced cocoa. Part 4 is aimed at certification scheme owners, certification bodies and all those seeking conformity to the ISO 34101 series. It also provides a starting point for farmers new to the concept of sustainable cocoa production, allowing time to progressively fulfil the requirements of Part 1 as experience is gained.

The ISO 34101 series was developed by ISO in collaboration with the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) under its technical committee CEN/TC 415, Sustainable and Traceable Cocoa, whose secretariat is held by DS, ISO’s member for Denmark, along with ISO technical committee ISO/TC 34, Food products, subcommittee SC 18, Cocoa, which is jointly managed by ISO’s members for Ghana (GSA) and the Netherlands (NEN).

Delegates from around the globe gather for one of the meetings of CEN/TC 415 and ISO/TC 34/SC 18.

Jack Steijn, Chair of both CEN/TC 415 and ISO/TC 34/SC 18, said the multi-stakeholder development process for the ISO 34101 series was extremely positive for the sector and will benefit the lives of the cocoa farmers, contribute to greater respect for the environment, and provide confidence to consumers that their chocolate comes from cocoa that has been grown sustainably.

“The series will enable farmers and farmer organizations to benefit from strategically addressing issues that threaten their sustainability by using approaches put forward by experts from all over the world,” he said.

“By introducing the Cocoa Farm Development Plan, a key element of the standard, cocoa farmers will be able to assess whether or not they will benefit from moving to sustainable production.”

“Then, if they choose to meet the requirements of the standards, they will be in a better position to develop into economically viable entrepreneurs.”

MacMillan Prentice, Twinned Committee Manager of ISO/TC 34/SC 18, added: “While a range of positive schemes and initiatives aimed at improving the sustainability of cocoa farming already exist, this standard aims to set a benchmark to which other programmes may align for the benefit of all.”

“Part 4 of the series helps to level the playing field for certification to sustainability in the sector, as it provides clarity on the requirements for certification schemes and certification bodies, something that did not exist before.”

The ISO 34101 series is available from your national ISO member or through the ISO Store.

Health and safety at work likely isn’t an issue that’s top of mind on a daily basis. Yet, for millions of workers across the globe, their jobs can put them in some extremely high-risk environments where valuing safety can mean the difference between life and death.

Organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the World Day for Safety and Health at Work aims to raise awareness of the importance of occupational health and safety and build a culture of prevention in the workplace. This year’s theme looks to the future for continuing these efforts through major changes such as technology, demographics, sustainable development, and changes in work organization.

To help organizations reduce work-related accidents, injuries and diseases, ISO developed the world’s first International Standard for occupational health and safety (OH&S). ISO 45001, Occupational health and safety management systems – Requirements with guidance for use, provides a framework to increase safety, reduce workplace risks and enhance health and well-being at work, enabling an organization to proactively improve its OH&S performance.

Applicable to all organizations, regardless of size, industry or nature of business, the standard is designed to be integrated into an organization’s existing management processes and follows the same high-level structure as other ISO management system standards, such as ISO 9001 (quality management) and ISO 14001 (environmental management).

ISO 45001 is the most visible part of ISO’s solutions for health and safety at work. The scope of workplace health and safety will be expanded in the future to include psychological health with a new standard in development. ISO 45003, Occupational health and safety management – Psychological health and safety in the workplace – Guidance, is expected to be published in 2021.

ISO has a multi-faceted approach to the workplace comprising the wide-ranging portfolio of numerous technical committees and subcommittees. Other ISO standards whose implementation can increase safety and promote health in the workplace address topics as varied as protective clothing and equipment, equipment for firefighting and fire protection, welding, tractors and machinery for agriculture and forestry, competency requirements for crane inspectors, risk management in cold workplaces and subjects such as safer ship recycling and the manufacturing and handling of nanomaterials.

Learn more about ISO 45001.