Haven to Heaven | FuturArc Prize 2024 Merit

Sa Huynh in Central Vietnam is an ancient fishing port that has played a pivotal role in the region’s maritime trade. Currently, it is at the centre of the fishing community and is a source of livelihood for many households.

In recent years, the place has become heavily polluted due to the accumulation of many sorts of waste. Notably, shipwrecks that have either been washed ashore or sunken to the seabed have been extremely detrimental towards the environment. This phenomenon has disrupted residents since the COVID-19 pandemic when there were limited resources to deal with the problem, and has remained so up to the present day. Thus, the area has become known as a ‘ship cemetery’.

Approaching the task for FuturArc Prize 2024: Architecture for Life After, the team sought to redefine a perspective on death by selecting Sa Huynh Fishing Port as a problematic yet promising site. The entrants considered that the wood from these abandoned vessels have strong potential for reuse, as timber for seafaring purposes is necessarily weatherproof.

Envisioning a timber structure that can last for the next 50 to 70 years, the entrants proposed a pier constructed out of reused wood that could facilitate ship movement and increase daily docking activities.

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PROJECT DATA

Scenario
Endings

Location
Sa Huynh Fishing Port

Country
Vietnam

City
Duc Pho, Quang Ngai

Site Area
23,000 square metres

FUTURARC PRIZE 2024: MERIT

Thạch Trần Xuân Anh, Nguyễn Chí Dũng and Lê Quốc Thái are senior-year students majoring in architecture while Phạm Dương Đăng Huy is a junior studying landscape architecture. All members are students of the University of Architecture Ho Chi Minh City. Their proposal for FuturArc Prize 2024 incorporates architectural and landscape solutions, fostering sustainable development that merges tourism, education and aquaculture within the site’s culture and context.

Read more stories from FuturArc 3Q 2024 Green Awards: Architecture for Life After!

References:
https://e.vnexpress.net/photo/news/shipwrecks-scatter-in-central-vietnam-coast-as-fishers-quit-jobs-4640176.html
https://vietnamnews.vn/society/1582533/waste-threatens-sa-huynh-coastal-area.html