Water quality is one of the most significant global environmental concerns, making it one of the most important areas of research for HORIBA’s fluorescence instruments. This article describes how our Fluorolog and FluoroMax spectrofluorometers and FluorEssence analysis software facilitate sensitive identification and quantification of natural and man-made sources of Colored Dissolved Organic Matter (CDOM) components important to water quality. The article focuses on the method of Excitation-Emission Mapping (EEM) which simultaneously measures the excitation (absorbance) and emission spectra for all fluorescent components in a water sample. The article emphasizes the most important aspect of the EEM method, which is the accurate correction of both the instrument’s spectral response and the influence of the light-absorbance properties of the sample as required for component identification and quantification. The future of water-quality fluorescence analysis is discussed in light of recognized potential applications and recent efforts to institute international standards for EEM methodology.