Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) professionals are facing a shifting landscape. The next few years are likely to bring change—not just in regulations, but also in what companies expect from safety, health, and environmental programs.

Between political flux, economic pressures, emerging technology, and growing concern for well-being, there are several issues that deserve close attention. Here are ten of the most significant EHS trends and challenges shaping the field now and into the near future.

1. OSHA’s “4 Es”: Engager, Educator, Enabler & Enforcer

OSHA’s role is broadening. It won’t just be about inspections or penalties. Instead, expect more:

  • Engagement: outreach and interaction beyond traditional inspections
  • Education: tools, training, and info sharing potentially via AI
  • Enabling: helping workplaces improve, not just policing them
  • Enforcement: still essential, but complemented by the first three

OSHA’s website traffic, like the 22 million Google-search visitors in a single year, shows that many small companies are seeking guidance. AI, chatbots, better online resources—these are in play. If OSHA leans into all four “E’s,” it may become more relevant and effective.

2. VPP Expansion (Voluntary Protection Programs)

Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) have been around, but growth has stalled. Key moves are underway:

  • Use of Special Government Employees (SGEs) and third-parties, like Certified Safety Professionals, to assist with applications and reviews
  • Relying on independent auditors or consultants to supplement OSHA’s review capacity
  • Collaboration & partnerships with professional safety/health organizations
  • Public recognition (branding, awards, visibility) for VPP sites
  • Using data, including AI, to identify companies already close to compliance who might qualify
  • Allowing “lower-maturity” entry into VPP if companies show continuous improvement and documented safety systems

The goal: more worksites engaging proactively in safety, not just striving to meet the bare minimum.

3. More Attention on Voluntary Consensus Standards

With regulatory action often slow or stalled, voluntary standards are gaining influence. They’re updated more consistently, often more practically, and act as benchmarks. Some to watch include:

  • ASTM International E2920-19 (Recording Occupational Injuries & Illnesses)
  • NFPA 660 (Combustible Dust Standard)
  • NFPA 70E (Electrical Safety in the Workplace)
  • ANSI/ASSP A10.1 (Pre-project and pre-task planning standard)
  • ANSI/ASSP Z244.1 (Control of Hazardous Energy)
  • ANSI/ASSP Z490 (Training, both in-person & virtual, and how to measure training effectiveness)

Also, there may soon be voluntary standards around AI use in EHS, and around Serious Injury & Fatality (SIF) prevention.

4. AI Becomes Standard in EHS Programs

Artificial Intelligence is no longer just “emerging”—it’s moving toward becoming a core part of EHS work. Key shifts include:

  1. From enforcement to strategy – EHS professionals will spend more time on risk analysis, culture development, planning, and using AI for insights rather than purely compliance.
  2. New skills required – Data analytics, understanding complex systems, using AI tools safely and ethically, and building reliable data sets.
  3. Collaboration with AI – AI helping as an assistant: parsing audit findings, incident reviews, exposure tracking, worker health metrics, leading/lagging indicators, etc.

That said, AI won't fully replace the human side of EHS: empathy, judgment, understanding culture, leadership—those still matter greatly.

5. Safety Differently Principles Become Actionable Tools

“Safety Differently,” a concept developed by Sidney Dekker, urges a shift away from blame and toward system thinking. Its principles are becoming more than just philosophy—they’re turning into practical tactics. Core ideas include:

  • People are the solution, not the problem
  • Safety is about positives, not just avoiding negatives
  • Human error is inevitable—design for it
  • Context matters—conditions and situations shape behavior
  • Build capacity in people and systems to identify, anticipate, and manage hazards

Look for these becoming embedded in everyday EHS practices—not just talked about but implemented.

6. Leading Indicators Embedded Deeper in EHS Programs

Instead of waiting for incidents or injuries (lagging indicators), more companies are building systems that track what leads to safer outcomes. Examples of leading indicators include:

  • Frequency of safety meetings
  • Percentage of workers completing safety training
  • Number of safety inspections conducted
  • Number of hazards reported
  • Percentage of hazards corrected
  • Worker participation in safety programs
  • Number of near misses reported
  • “Good observations” program data
  • Improved understanding of employee safety perceptions—surveys, one-on-one conversations, safety “huddles”
  • Hazard elimination and reduction of risk

These metrics help spot trouble before it becomes a problem and help signal where proactive changes are needed.

7. SIF (Serious Injury & Fatality) Prevention Becomes Widespread

It’s not enough to reduce minor injuries. SIF prevention is emerging as a top priority because:

  • Many companies have already reduced recordable injuries and illnesses, but SIFs remain stubbornly steady
  • Fatalities and life-altering injuries are the biggest impact events—not just for the people involved but for companies’ reputation, morale, and legal risk
  • Flattening of fatality numbers over recent years means more needs to be done to move the needle

Preventing these events requires thoughtful design of systems, strong hazard controls, and leadership commitment.

8. Health (Especially Mental Health) Becomes as Important as Safety

Traditionally, safety got most of the attention. But health is coming into sharper focus—psychosocial risks are no longer peripheral. Key factors include:

  • Bullying, harassment, workplace violence
  • Fatigue, long hours, work overload
  • Poor work tools or insufficient resources
  • Lack of employee input/feedback on hazards
  • Work environments where productivity or profits are perceived to matter more than safety

Some survey data reveals:

  • A large portion of workers feel overworked or lack resources
  • Many think management doesn’t take their hazard or safety feedback seriously
  • Some feel fear about safety in the workplace
  • A substantial number don’t feel “completely safe” at work

Mental health and overall well-being are gaining visibility as integral to safety programs.

9. Leadership Becomes More Essential than Ever

Good leadership has always mattered—but the upcoming years will demand a new kind of leadership in EHS. Traits to look for:

  1. Be Proactive—don’t just respond to incidents
  2. Be Curious—go beyond just numbers and compliance
  3. Be Open-minded & Accepting—especially when dealing with tough findings
  4. Be Action-oriented—when issues are found, they must be addressed promptly
  5. Be Value-based—anchoring programs in core, consistent values rather than shifting priorities
  6. Communicate—transparency, sharing findings and data throughout the organization
  7. Actively Care—leadership that listens, mentors, genuinely supports people, not just “on paper”
  8. Be Positive—reinforce successes, not only failures

Leadership sets the tone—not just for compliance, but for culture, trust, safety, and health.

10. Widening Gap Between “Haves” and “Have-Nots” in EHS

There’s growing disparity in what companies can do when it comes to safety and health:

  • Haves: large multinational or high-risk operations; invested safety infrastructure; well-funded EHS programs; often ahead of compliance; advanced systems like ISO 45001 or ANSI Z10, strong tech, data, institutional knowledge
  • Have-nots: small to mid-size firms; limited budgets; often reactive rather than proactive; few or no EHS specialists on staff; lack of resources to understand or implement regulations or strong safety systems

Some indicators:

  • EHS budgets are being squeezed in many smaller companies
  • Staff and leadership buy-in vary widely
  • Under-resourced organizations often lack strong safety culture, or struggle with basic compliance

The gap likely will widen unless more support, resources, knowledge, and access are provided to smaller firms.

What Does This Mean for EHS Professionals & Organizations?

Given these ten trends, here are some strategic takeaways for EHS leaders, safety managers, and organizations thinking ahead.

  • Push for balanced investment: not just in compliance, but also in training, leadership development, health programs, mental well-being.
  • Integrate AI and data analytics wisely: use them to predict risk, monitor performance, and spot trends—but don’t neglect the human side.
  • Adopt and enforce voluntary consensus standards even if your operations aren’t required by regulation; they can offer best practices and peer benchmarks.
  • Measure what matters: build systems to track leading indicators, near-misses, hazards reported/rectified—not just incidents after the fact.
  • Focus on leadership behavior: invest in leaders who can act proactively, show empathy, prioritize safety and health, and communicate openly.
  • Provide resources to support smaller firms: share best practices, make tools and templates available, and build simpler pathways to compliance.

Final Thoughts

As the EHS world evolves, what used to be optional priorities will become central. Whether due to regulatory pressures, workforce expectations, or operational necessity, programs that integrate leadership, health, data, and culture alongside standard safety work will stand out.

The next few years are likely to be defining for EHS professionals who can navigate both risk and opportunity. If you’re in safety or health responsibility, staying ahead of these issues isn’t just about reducing risk—it’s about shaping safer, more resilient, human-centered workplaces.