In 2002, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP) National Coastal Assessment (NCA), in conjunction with state agencies, Region 9, and the University of Hawaii, conducted the first comprehensive survey of the condition of estuarine resources in Hawaii. The survey sampled 79 stations on islands of the Hawaiian chain and included all of the indicators of the NCA surveys. The Hawaiian surveys,however, did not produce estimates of sediment toxicity because of insufficient soft sediments, and rather than assessing contaminant levels in fish, it assessed the body burdens of sea cucumbers.The Western Pilot-Coastal Monitoring is a large-scale, comprehensive environmental monitoring strategy designed to provide regional characterization of estuarine conditions along the West and Pacific Coasts of the United States.