In this volume of the Handbook of Statistics with the primary focus on bioenvironmental and public health statistics, a rather off-beat approach has been taken, wherein biostatistical methods that are relevant to the dissemination of bioenvironmental and public health investigations have been thoroughly emphasised, and placed side by side with the fruitful applications. One aspect of statistical methodology that merits special appraisal is the extent of appropriateness of some standard statistical tools in such non-standard applications, and much of the deliberation in this volume is geared to alternative non-standard and application oriented methodology that have been developed to suit better bioenvironmental and public health studies.