Rome was an empire that used the environment a lot. They mined, and built aqueducts. And the environment helped them learn to fight on many different terrains.
Trade and War
Romans interacted with the Tiber River, and the Mediterranean Sea, especially for trading. There were many salt flats around Rome, and back then salt was extremely valuable. Because of the vast number of biomes, Roman troops learned to fight on any terrain.
Tiber River. Digital image. Wikepedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.
Roman Mine. Digital image. Wikepedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015.
Disadvantages and Resources
Lack of resources caused the Roman expansion to slow down. Logging and agriculture were huge problems. Mining was a good and bad thing. The Romans mined a lot of lead, which caused much lead pollution, especially in the water. Also Rome had many aqueducts which redirected water into cities, or any area they needed it to be.