Abstract
Sustainable approaches are recognized as a necessity for lowland planning and management. The spatial dimension of sustainability engages relations between different land uses, ecosystems, and human effects at different scales and over time. Yunlin County, located in south‐western Taiwan, has abundant natural resources but has been suffering from flooding and land subsidence for a long time. With the effects of climate change, lowland management in this area is becoming complicated. Possible strategies should thus be considered and conveyed to decision‐makers in the most efficient and transparent way, so as to redirect further discussion towards the conflicting aspects. The study evaluated the possible consequences of three planning scenarios on safety, economic, and ecological resources as a whole based on the future developing trend. The scenarios were then compared by applying OSIRIS, a decision and evaluation support system, to highlight the conflicting sites and to propose an optimal strategy. The results illustrated that the current lowland management policy is not effective and sustainable. Instead, the Coastal Conservation Green Way scenario might not only ease flood threat but also provide ecological benefit. The study could thus contribute to enhanced communication between stakeholders and help achieve sustainable lowland management. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.