The Korean Peninsula, jutting southward from the Asian mainland into the Pacific Ocean, is surrounded by numerous bays and islands on three sides. The study area of this research is the coastal area surrounding the Sacheon Bay, which is located in the...
The Korean Peninsula, jutting southward from the Asian mainland into the Pacific Ocean, is surrounded by numerous bays and islands on three sides. The study area of this research is the coastal area surrounding the Sacheon Bay, which is located in the mid-southern tip of the peninsula. Historically, the bay region took the role of the main gate leading to the western part of Kyung-nam Do(Province) due to the fact that the bay is the nearest coast to Chinju, the central city of the province. The Sacheon Bay had provided important sea routes from the old days until the early twentieth century. Because of the bay`s sea routes, the bay region has been militarily of great significance. Recently, road/rail/highway/airplane transportation functions have become gradually increased but sea transportation function has been decreased in the region. As the Sacheon Bay was rich in fishery resources, dozens of fishing villages in the bay region depended on fishery and marine product industries for long years. But the inflow of the fresh water used to cause serious damage to the fishing industry in the bay region after a drainage canal from the Nam River was constructed in 1969. As a result, the industry has dwindled gradually for last decades. Recently, a couple of industrial parks were constructed along the coast and many manufacturing factories were built on the parks. It has been expected that many jobs lost in fishery and agriculture are replaced by new opportunities in industry. More than half of the workers employed in the parks` factories commute from the city of Chinju. It is asserted in this paper that the transportation, fishery, manufacturing, and tourism functions of the Sacheon Bay region are closely associated with. The characteristics of the region can be well understood through the functional changes and associations.