Oceans, rivers, and lakes are often beautiful, but they’re not necessarily convenient places to build things. Yet, many types of the infrastructure we depend on every day, including wharves, bridges, and dams, are founded below the water. How do they do it? On today’s episode, we’re talking about different types of underwater construction, including cofferdams, diversions, caissons, and drilled shafts. Whether the construction site is on the bottom of a lake or river, or simply located in the floodplain and only at risk during extreme weather, engineers and construction contractors put a significant amount of thought and consideration into the feasibility and costs of managing this water.