The socio-economic development of european coastal areas has increased dramatically over the last decades. Over 75% of the population inhabits our coastlines, along with many industries, ports, tourism, etc, making them very difficult areas to appropriately manage. The natural risks and hazards are also increasing along with their economic effects, some of these being tsunamis, floods, rising sea levels due to climate change, increase in the frequency and strength of storms, etc. All of these changes can be studied through environmental hydraulics.

An efficient and coherent water management policy should take into account the vulnerability of the ecosystems of continental, coastal and transitional waters.