Sediment management issues are of importance to many programs within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The ability to assess sediment quality in a technically reliable and legally defensible manner is necessary for effective sediment management. The goal of these committees is to facilitate decisions made at various stages in the management process such as assessing sediment contamination, deciding on the need for and type of management action, and evaluating types of remediation. The document, prepared by the Sediment Oversight Technical Committee, describes the various methods used to assess sediment quality.