Although pharmaceuticals improve health and welfare in intended uses, the constant release of pharmaceuticals into the environment through manufacturing, consumption, excretion, and improper disposal also poses risks that require better understanding and management.

Pharmaceutical pollutants entering the environment via wastewater treatment plant discharge and contamination from manufacturing or disposal sites threaten public, their biological activity and toxicity also endanger aquatic ecosystems, food supplies, and drinking water sources.

Certain pharmaceuticals like antibiotics and steroids disrupt hormonal systems in fish and other wildlife. The overuse of antibiotics has increased bacterial resistance, complicating medical care. As new pharmaceuticals are frequently introduced, the scope of their long term impacts on non-target organisms and the development of resistance remain uncertain without environmental monitoring and regulation.