Dolphins may attract tourists to HZMB Eastern Island

The Eastern Island of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) will present visitors with exquisite decorative design, a distant view of Lantau Island, and possible encounters with Chinese white dolphins.

The Bridge Authority posted a notice on its website on April 24calling for tenders on world-leading overall plans and conceptual designs for the island tourism and support facilities.

Eastern Island

The engineered island near Chek Lap Kok International Airport serves as the Hong Kong entrance to a subsea tunnel. It houses an integrated operation center for transportation, management, service, rescue, and sightseeing.

A four-story main building looks like a luxury yacht with a science fiction style. On top is a shell-shaped wind cowl used o ventilate the marine tunnel. It has two special air outlets, one facing east, and the other west.

Close-up look at the island [Photos courtesy WeChat account: gh_4925269112e0]

Aesthetically, the air outlets on Eastern Artificial Island stand for a son's eyes, while those on Western Artificial Island resemble the eyes of his mother. They look at each other affectionately across the sea.

In addition to such man-made touches, visitors are likely to encounter "Giant Pandas of the Sea," as the area contains the world's largest habitat of Chinese White Dolphins. Five were spotted by a patrol vessel of the Guangdong Maritime Safety Administration on Oct 23, 2018 at 10 am, according to reports of Hong Kong's Wen Wei Po.

Chinese white dolphins [Photo courtesy WeChat account: neighbor_zh]