The document is a glossary that defines abbreviations, terms, and jargon commonly used in the field of environmental health and safety (EHS). It provides definitions for 50 terms, including CAPA (Corrective and Preventive Action Procedure), EHS&Q (Environmental, Health, Safety, and Quality), ISO (International Organization for Standardization), OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration), and PPE (Personal Protective Equipment). The glossary is intended to help those new to the EHS field understand the specialized language used by EHS professionals.

2. 1
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
Introduction:
The field of environmental health and safety (EHS) is filled with abbreviations,
terms, and industry jargon. It can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re new to
the world of EHS! To truly understand the benefits, nuances, and depth of the field
of EHS, you have to understand what EHS professionals are talking about.
APQS – Advanced Product Quality Planning
Advanced product quality planning is a framework of
procedures and techniques used to develop products in an
industry.
CAPA – Corrective and Preventive Action Procedure
CAPA or Corrective And Preventive Action is a methodological
strategy for mitigating risks and improving processes,
identifying the sources of actual or potential issues and their
root causes, planning solutions for those problems, and
documenting the solution so that similar issues don’t occur in
the future.
CBI – Critical Business Issues
Critical Business Issues are the most important items on an
organization’s agenda and are directly connected to its success.

3. 2
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
CEM – Continuous Emission Monitoring System
Continuous emission monitoring systems are used as a tool to
monitor the effluent gas streams resulting from combustion in
industrial processes. CEMS can measure gas for oxygen, carbon
monoxide, and carbon dioxide to provide information for
combustion control in industrial settings.
COSHH – Control of Substances Hazardous to Health
The Control of Substances Hazardous To Health (COSHH)
regulations were first issued in 2002 and are administered by
the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) of the United Kingdom. The
regulations require employers to control exposure to hazardous
substances in the workplace to prevent ill health.
CPQ – Cost of Product Quality
CPQ is defined as a methodology that allows an organization to
determine the extent to which its resources are used for
activities that prevent poor quality, that appraise the quality of
the organization’s products or services, and that result from
internal and external failures.

4. 3
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
EHS&Q – Environmental, Health, Safety, and Quality
EHS&Q is a general term used to refer to laws, rules,
regulations, professions, programs, and workplace efforts to
protect the health and safety of employees and the public as
well as the environment from hazards associated with the
workplace.
EIS – Environmental Impact Statement
An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is a document
prepared to describe the effects of proposed activities on the
environment.
EMS – Environmental Management System
An environmental management system is a system and
database which integrates procedures and processes for
training personnel, monitoring, summarizing, and reporting of
specialized environmental performance information to internal
and external stakeholders of a firm.

5. 4
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
EPCS – Electronic Prescription of Controlled Substances
Electronic prescribing for controlled substances (EPCS) is the
process of electronically transmitting prescriptions using an
electronic format. Practitioners issuing electronic prescriptions
for controlled substances must use a software application that
meets all Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) requirements.
ESA – Environmental Site Assessment
An environmental site assessment is a report prepared for a real
estate holding that identifies potential or existing
environmental contamination liabilities. The analysis, often
called an ESA, typically addresses both the underlying land as
well as physical improvements to the property.
ESG – Environmental, Social, and Governance
ESG is a framework designed to be integrated into an
organization’s strategy to create enterprise value by expanding
the organizational objectives to include the identification,
assessment, and management of sustainability-related risks and
opportunities in respect to all organizational stakeholders
(including but not limited to customers, suppliers and
employees) and the environment

6. 5
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
FMEA – Failure Modes and Effects Analysis
Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) is a systematic,
proactive method for evaluating a process to identify where and
how it might fail and to assess the relative impact of different
failures in order to identify the parts of the process that are
most in need of change.
GHG – Greenhouse Gas
A greenhouse gas is a gas that absorbs and emits radiant energy
within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse
effect. The primary greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere are
water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and
ozone.
GSA – General Services Administration (US Government
Department)
The General Services Administration manages federal property
and provides contracting options for government agencies.
HAP – Hazardous Air Pollutant
HAPs, also known as toxic air pollutants or air toxics, are those
pollutants that cause or may cause cancer or other serious
health effects.

7. 6
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
HIPPA – Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
HIPAA is a federal law that requires the creation of national
standards to protect sensitive patient health information from
being disclosed.
IH – Industrial Hygiene
Industrial hygiene is the science of protecting the health and
safety of people in the workplace.
IHM – Industrial Hygiene Management
Completing or overseeing a variety of investigative, inspection,
and consultative assignments to prevent occupational diseases
and protect and improve the industrial health and work
environment of the state labor force.
IM – Incident Management
Incident management (IM) is the practice of restoring services
as quickly as possible after an incident.

8. 7
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
ISO – International Organization for Standardization
ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is a
worldwide federation of national standards bodies. ISO is a
nongovernmental organization that comprises standards bodies
from more than 160 countries, with one standards body
representing each member country.
JHA – Job Hazard Analysis
Job hazard analysis (JHA) identifies and analyzes hazards
associated with the performance of various individual job tasks
to make each worker as safe as possible.
JSA – Job Safety Analysis
A Job Safety Analysis is a procedure which helps integrate
accepted safety and health principles and practices into a
particular task or job operation. In a JSA, each basic step of the
job is to identify potential hazards and to recommend the safest
way to do the job

9. 8
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
MOC – Management of Change
Management of change (MOC) is a policy companies use to
manage any health, safety, or environmental risks that arise
when facilities, employees, or operations are updated, added,
or otherwise modified.
NCM – Nonconforming materials
Non-Conforming Material means any Products that, upon
delivery to Buyer, an Authorized Third Party or Buyer’s
Customer fails to conform with any requirements of the
Agreement.
NCM – Notice of commencement of manufacturing
The date of commencement is the date of completion of the
non-exempt manufacture of the first amount (batch, drum, etc.)
of a new chemical substance identified in the submitter’s PMN.
OH – Occupational Health
Occupational health is an area of work in public health to
promote and maintain highest degree of physical, mental, and
social well-being of workers in all occupations.

10. 9
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
OSHA – Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a large
regulatory agency of the United States Department of Labor
that originally had federal visitorial powers to inspect and
examine workplaces.
PFT – Pulmonary Function Testing
Pulmonary function tests (PFT’s) are breathing tests to find out
how well you move air in and out of your lungs and how well
oxygen enters your bloodstream.
PII – Personally Identifiable Information
Any representation of information that permits the identity of
an individual to whom the information applies to be reasonably
inferred by either direct or indirect means.
PPAP – Production Part Approval Process
The Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) is a standardized
process in the automotive and aerospace industries that helps
manufacturers and suppliers communicate and approve
production designs and processes before, during, and after
manufacturing.

11. 10
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
PPE – Personal Protective Equipment
Personal protective equipment, commonly referred to as “PPE”,
is equipment worn to minimize exposure to hazards that cause
serious workplace injuries and illnesses.
QA – Quality Assurance
Quality assurance is the term used in both manufacturing and
service industries to describe the systematic efforts taken to
insure that the product delivered to the customer meets with
the contractual and other agreed-upon performance, design,
reliability, and maintainability expectations of that customer.
QC – Quality Control
Quality control (QC) is a process through which a business seeks
to ensure that product quality is maintained or improved.
Quality control requires the company to create an environment
where management and employees strive for perfection.

12. 11
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
QMS – Quality Management Solution
A quality management system (QMS) is defined as a formalized
system that documents processes, procedures, and
responsibilities for achieving quality policies and objectives. A
QMS helps coordinate and direct an organization’s activities to
meet customer and regulatory requirements and improve its
effectiveness and efficiency on a continuous basis.
RCA – Root Cause Analysis
Root cause analysis (RCA) is the process of discovering the root
causes of problems in order to identify appropriate solutions.
RCA assumes that it is much more effective to systematically
prevent and solve for underlying issues rather than just treating
ad hoc symptoms and putting out fires.
RFT – Respirator Fit Test
A respirator fit test checks whether a respirator properly fits the
face of someone who wears it. The fitting characteristic of a
respirator is the ability of the mask to separate a worker’s
respiratory system from ambient air.

13. 12
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
RPN – Risk Priority Number
The RPN can be used to prioritize high-risk issues and determine
the requirement for corrective action.
RSI – Repetitive Strain Injuries
A repetitive strain injury is damage to your muscles, tendons or
nerves caused by repetitive motions and constant use.
SCI – Safety Culture Index
The Safety Culture Index (SCI) is a multi-category survey
instrument designed to categorise individual perceptions,
beliefs, experiences and behavioursconcerning safety within an
organisation. Survey information is then assessed against
internal and external safety culture norms.
SDS – Safety Data Sheet
A Safety Data Sheet (formerly called Material Safety Data Sheet)
is a detailed informational document prepared by the
manufacturer or importer of a hazardous chemical. It describes
the physical and chemical properties of the product.

14. 13
EHS – Glossary
Prof. Roberto Lico – licoreis@licoreis.com.br
SEG – Similar Exposure Group
A Similar Exposure Group (SEG) is a group of workers who have
common risks and similar exposure profiles
SPC – Statistical Process Control
Statistical process control is a method of quality control which
employs statistical methods to monitor and control a process.
This helps to ensure that the process operates efficiently,
producing more specification-conforming products with less
waste.