[en] This article reviews the relative characteristics of different alternative x-ray spectroscopy (XRS) techniques to emphasize the inherent methodological problems of XRS, to provide insight into approaches for performing quantitative analysis of air, water, and other environmental samples, and finally, to illustrate briefly some of the applications of XRS in the environment field. Following the introduction, contents include the following: air pollution analysis; water pollution analysis; and analysis of other environmental samples. (AT)