Many studies have showed that impact by chemical contamination on benthos can be hard to demonstrate in the presence of unmeasured factors. Although influence of some habitat characteristics has been identified in parts of the St. Lawrence River, the use of benthos to assess chemically degraded sites remains uncertain. The purpose of this study is to compare the potential of various benthic macroinvertebrates community indices (diversity, richness, biotic) for assessing sediment quality in comparison with chemical sediment quality guidelines classification. In an attempt to identify possibly key factors that could be weighing in on benthic macroinvertebrates community structure, we will also regroup sites based on prospect habitat characteristics. This study is a part of a large research project aiming at developing an ERA tiered framework for sediment management, in the context of integrated management of contaminated sediment, site restoration and sustainable navigation. During falls 2004-2005, macroinvertebrates were collected in 59 sites in the St. Lawrence River, especially in its three fluvial lakes and in the harbour zone of Montreal. Organic (PCBs, PAHs, petroleum hydrocarbons), inorganic (As, Cd, Cu, Cr, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn) contaminants and sediments characteristics (e.g. grain size, metal-binding phases, nutrients) were measured in whole sediment. The preliminary results and the implication for the development of an ERA tiered framework will be discussed.