To protect natural environments, laws and prefectural and city regulations specify strict water quality standards for factory effluent water. In particular, there are strict independent water quality measurement requirements for designated facilities that are considered at risk of discharging water that is potentially hazardous to human health or living environments, or discharging wastewater or other polluted water that contains dioxins.

That means those involved in effluent water management must constantly check instrument status to ensure water quality is being measured properly. However, because the instruments are often installed near outflow points or in controlled areas not normally accessible to people, monitoring instruments requires routine visits or extensive equipment.