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xi INTRODUCTION the much shorter, but far more arduous and dangerous journey over land. Yet in an era where fresh Alaskan halibut can reach your table overnight, super-sized container ships delivering Asian electronic equipment cross the ocean in less than  days, and oil tank- ers longer than a football fi eld arrive from the Persian Gulf in less than seven days, it is easy to forget the tremendous advances in transportation that have made products so convenient and readily available. Transportation of people and goods along rivers and canals was extremely prevalent in ancient China, and throughout Europe and the United States up until the th cen- tury, because of the high cost of ground transportation. In much of the world, it could cost more to move goods  miles inland than across the Atlantic Ocean. However, after the fi rst steam locomotives began running in the early th century, rail became a formi- dable competitor to canals featuring horse-drawn barges. Whereas a horse could pull far more goods on a barge at slow speeds, at high speeds much more could be pulled by rail since water resistance increases much faster with speed than air and rolling resistance. Although water resistance resulted in the slow demise of the canal system for high- value goods, canals and waterways have remained a vital means of transporting agricul- tural, coal and raw materials. It is likely the marine mode will always have an energy advantage at transporting large volumes of freight at slow speeds, but inland rivers and waterways will continue to be pulled in several competing directions. Th e need for dams to provide hydroelectric power and irrigation must compete with the need for transpor- tation and sustaining fi sh populations. Much of human history has taken place either on the water, or at the water’s edge. Water draws us near, but also serves as a natural border between cities, states, and countries. Access to the waterfront has always had a signifi cant infl uence on local and national economies, with landlocked nations such as Bolivia in South America, Afghan- istan in Asia, and several African nations at a signifi cant disadvantage to their neighbors in terms of trade and economic development. Th erefore it is not surprising that many wars have been fought over control of water, and favorable international commerce was largely dictated by gunboat “big stick” diplomacy until the th century when “dollar diplomacy” became dominant. In modern times, the recreation and leisure aspect of the coast has gained in promi- nence. Going to the beach has been a favorite past time for decades, but population growth, more aff ordable jet travel, greater leisure time, and more diverse choices have signifi cantly increased interest among the populace and coastal developments have re- sponded to attract tourists, including cruise lines. Th e desire to escape harsh winter conditions has led to the growth in travel to beautiful coastal beaches in Mexico, the Caribbean, and the South Pacifi c. Th e number and popularity of sporting activities also has increased. Whereas rowing, sports fi shing, and sailing have a long history, surfi ng, water skiing, wind surfi ng and kite sailing have been introduced in more modern times. Finally, there are the environmental aspects to consider. Th ere is widespread disagree- ment whether the oceans and rivers are ecologically resilient or fragile—fragile in the sense that detrimental development does irreversible damage. According to the United