Coastal Zone Special Planning of an Estuary City: A Case Study of Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province

Coastal zone special planning is an important part of the territory spatial planning system in coastal cities. In the coastal zone of estuary cities, river and sea intersect, multiple spatial elements overlap, and the contradiction between development and protection is prominent. Therefore, discussing the entirety of coastal special planning for estuary cities has great theoretical and practical value. To address the technical difficulties facing the estuary city coastal zone special plan, including the delineation of the coastal zone, overall planning of the estuary and coastal space, and coordination of the planning management systems, we proposed solutions targeted to these matters in Guangzhou. (1) Method of delineating the scope of the coastal zone: We combined the delineation criteria proposed by the superior plan with the results of the shoreline revision survey to make an initial delineation of the coastal zone. Then, we connected the management units and social management boundaries along the coast o