Environmental monitoring i.e. the measurement of chemical exposures and effects in the receiving environment is a valuable tool for environmental risk assessment (ERA), environmental impact assessment (EIA) and environmental performance assessment. While ERA predicts the environmental impact of an effluent, chemical release or product use, the only way of validating that prediction is to study the actual receiving environment. "The environment itself is the final arbiter". Monitoring the receiving environment takes into account the interaction of chemical mixtures effluents, environmental amelioration and their long-term effects on exposed organisms.
