A continuous field survey program including bathymetry, current, wave, tide, and sediment has been carried out in the past 10 years for the Yunlin Offshore Industrial Estate Project site. Through the survey data and related literature, coastal morphology evolution mechanism of the project site was established accordingly. It indicates that the dominated factors to influence the Yunlin coastline are summer flood and the prevailing monsoon wave action in winter. The MIKE21 and LITPACK modeling package developed by Danish Hydraulic Institute were used as main modeling tools to quantify the possible impact induced by the project.
Yunlin Offshore Industrial Estate is located in the western coast of central Taiwan, stretching from the south bank of the Choshui River in the north to the south about 5 kilometers from the north bank of the Peikang River. Its length from north to south is about 32 kilometers, and its width from east to west reaches 3 to 4 kilometers. Total area is about 17,203 hectares, of which 11,562 hectares is reclaimed land area. The types of industries planned for the estate include oil refinery, steel, petrochemicals, metals, power plant, and their mid and downstream industries, and related technology industries. The project was approved by the government in 1991 and started to construct since 1994. The project consists of one inland existing fishery pond area (Taihsi District, 1,130 ha), three offshore districts from north to south including Mailiao District (2,334 ha), Hsinhsing District (991 ha), Szuhu District (7,107 ha), and two new deepwater industrial ports (Mailiao Industrial Port and Szuhu Industrial Port) as shown in Fig 1. At present, Mailiao District together with Mailiao Port is nearly completed, and the Shinshing District is now under construction. The other two districts will be developed later according to the demand for the land.