1. A sensing and detection system for detecting materials of interest associated with transportation by water, comprising: an illumination component of a watercraft for imposing electromagnetic energy on targets located throughout the watercraft; a sensing component of the watercraft for automatically scanning the targets for presence of materials of interest; an optical receiving component of the watercraft for receiving photoluminescent information representative of a change in a chemical component of the materials of interest; and a notification component of the watercraft for generating a notification signal in response to sensing one or more of the materials of interest.