Environmental monitoring is conducted to provide information on status, and changes in status, of an environmental system. Often monitoring is associated with an impact, such as a proposed land development activity or rehabilitation of a habitat. At other times, environmental monitoring is conducted to assess the success (or failure) of a new environmental management strategy or change in strategy. Monitoring can also be carried out to provide information on the overall status of a land or water area of special interest in fields such as biodiversity, the welfare of an endangered species, or the abundance of a pest species.