In support of coastal area ecosystems management, an Integrated Coastal Assessment and Monitoring System (ICAMS) was developed to monitor water quality and coastal resources distribution and usage parameters by using multiple earth observation data such as satellite data from SeaWIFS and future ENVISAT sensors and in situ measurements. Such a system will provide data of appropriate spatial and temporal scale to address information needs in coastal management, such as the origins, causes and implications of changes of coastal water quality on associated resources.