Editing Kentucky (section)

===Water===

As the state is bounded by two of the largest rivers in North America, water transportation has historically played a major role in Kentucky's economy. Louisville was a major port for steamships in the nineteenth century. Today, most barge traffic on Kentucky waterways consists of coal that is shipped from both the Eastern and Western Coalfields, about half of which is used locally to power many power plants located directly off the [[Ohio River]], with the rest being exported to other countries, most notably Japan.

Many of the largest ports in the United States are located in or adjacent to Kentucky, including:
* [[Port of Huntington-Tristate|Huntington-Tristate]] (includes [[Ashland, Kentucky]]), largest [[inland port]] and 7th largest overall
* Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky, 5th largest inland port and 43rd overall
* Louisville-Southern Indiana, 7th largest inland port and 55th overall

As a state, Kentucky ranks 10th overall in port tonnage.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iwr.usace.army.mil/ndc/wcsc/pdf/inlandport03f.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090825064009/http://www.iwr.usace.army.mil/ndc/wcsc/pdf/inlandport03f.pdf |archive-date=August 25, 2009 |title=Top 20 Inland U.S. Ports for 2003 |access-date=December 7, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iwr.usace.army.mil/ndc/wcsc/portton01.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100502153836/http://www.iwr.usace.army.mil/ndc/wcsc/portton01.htm |archive-date=May 2, 2010 |title=CY 2001 Tonnage for Selected U.S. Ports by Port Tons |date=May 2, 2010 |access-date=December 7, 2011}}</ref>

The only natural obstacle along the entire length of the Ohio River is the [[Falls of the Ohio]], located just west of [[Downtown Louisville]].