Tidewater is a geographic area of southeast Virginia and northeastern North Carolina that is considered a part of the Coastal Plain. Portions of Maryland facing the Chesapeake Bay are also given this designation.[1] The area gains its name because of the effect the area has from the changing tides of local rivers, sounds, and the ocean. The area is generally flat and low and composed of tidal marsh and large expanses of swamp. Much of the area is covered with poquoson and the higher areas are used for agricultural farmlands. Geographically, in North Carolina and Virginia the tidewater area is the land between the Suffolk Scarp and the Atlantic Ocean. The Hampton Roads area of Virginia is considered to be in the tidewater. Extreme Southern Maryland [2] and parts of the lower Eastern Shore round out the northern fringe of the region on the Chesapeake Bay.