The present approach to evaluate the risk of soil and groundwater pollution based on measured total concentration of a limited number of contaminants in the soil and water is insufficient. Determination of the availability of a contaminant in the soil, subsoil and aquifer systems for target organisms and determination of its impact on the quality of life (uptake by vegetation, interaction with aquatic and terrestrial life, evaluation of toxic effects, leaching in subsurface water bodies, etc.) gives a better approach. Knowledge of contaminant fate and transport, its bioavailability for target organisms and the bioaccumulation in food chains is present, but needs to be further integrated in coherent framework for assessing effectively the environmental risk. This integration has not yet been sufficiently developed.