Artificial island in the North Sea and options for coastal development

Abstract

A large-scale project such as the construction of an offshore island requires careful consideration not only of the direct effects of such intervention, but also of the implications for the further evolution of the Dutch coast. It is found that the construction of an offshore island is technically possible and - i f optimally shaped and carefully placed - would have only limited effects on the marine and coastal environment which could be compensated for. I f only the island were built, the already limited resilience of the Dutch coast would be even further decreased, because more coastal maintenance will be necessary. But i f the island is combined with other measures, like locally increasing the nearshore sand volumes by e.g. seaward protruding sand hooks, the resilience of the coast will improve. For this reason an indepth discussion is recommended about the long-term future of the Dutch coast.