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Sustainability
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Protecting Coastal Ecosystems: Sustainable Approaches to Managing Marine Pollution
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Protecting Coastal Ecosystems: Sustainable Approaches to Managing Marine Pollution

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Oceans".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 March 2026 | Viewed by 2589

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Roberto Martins

E-Mail Website1 Website2
Guest Editor
CESAM—Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies and Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Interests: marine ecotoxicology; marine ecology; marine and coastal pollution; biofouling; corrosion; emerging contaminants; nanomaterials; biocides; coatings, polymers, and their additives; environmental behavior
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Denis Abessa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Santos 11330-900, SP, Brazil
Interests: aquatic toxicology; marine pollution; environmental management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue focuses on robustly discussing novel and sustainable approaches to mitigating marine pollution and, thus, protecting coastal ecosystems.

It will address novel and sustainable approaches to prevent, mitigate, and manage marine pollution:

  • Advanced technologies to passively collect and concentrate plastic litter and debris for subsequent removal (e.g., floating barriers and screens);
  • Pollution management tools and approaches appropriate for complex coastal socio-ecological systems, addressing the combined effects of climate change, environmental stressors, and chemical/physical pollution on coastal ecosystems. These may include studies on detection, quantification, environmental fate, and behavior in estuarine, coastal, and marine environments, as well as the ecotoxicological effects of contaminants;
  • Prevention measures, especially in maritime industries (e.g., shipping, aquaculture, and offshore), to protect the ecosystems and contribute to the sustainability of maritime activities. These may include eco-friendly technologies or products to replace or improve current harmful products, particularly anti-fouling and anti-corrosion coatings and their additives (key sources of chemical contamination).

In summary, this SI intends to gather the latest achievements regarding sustainable approaches to achieve a net zero-pollution environment by 2030, specifically in marine and coastal ecosystems, contributing to the implementation of the UN SDGs and regional environmental policies and strategies (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52021SC0141&qid=1669371644548).

Dr. Roberto Martins
Dr. Denis Abessa
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • marine pollution
  • coastal management
  • marine ecotoxicology
  • estuaries
  • coastal zones
  • contaminants of emerging concern
  • water quality
  • marine ecology
  • eutrophication
  • microbiology

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 6458 KiB  
Article
A Citizen Science Approach to Supporting Environmental Sustainability and Marine Litter Monitoring: A Case Study of USV Mapping of the Distribution of Anthropogenic Debris on Italian Sandy Beaches
by Silvia Merlino, Marco Paterni, Luciano Massetti, Luca Cocchi and Marina Locritani
Sustainability 2025, 17(11), 5048; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115048 - 30 May 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 499
Abstract
Research on the dynamic mechanisms driving the accumulation of anthropogenic marine debris (AMD) in highly dynamic environments, such as extensive sandy beaches, remains limited. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be used to map macro-marine litter in these environments over large temporal and spatial [...] Read more.
Research on the dynamic mechanisms driving the accumulation of anthropogenic marine debris (AMD) in highly dynamic environments, such as extensive sandy beaches, remains limited. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) can be used to map macro-marine litter in these environments over large temporal and spatial scales, but several challenges remain in their interpretation. In this study, secondary school students participated in a citizen science initiative, during which they identified, marked, and classified waste items using a series of UAV orthophotos collected along an 800 m extended Italian beach in different seasons. A specific training program and a collection of working tools were developed to support these activities, which were carried out under the constraints imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The accuracy of the citizen science approach was evaluated by comparing its results with standard in situ visual census surveys conducted in the same area. This methodology not only enabled an analysis of the temporal dynamics of AMD accumulation but also served an important educational function. The effectiveness of the learning experience was estimated using pre- and post-activity questionnaires. The results indicate a clear improvement in the students’ knowledge, interest, and awareness regarding marine litter, highlighting the potential of citizen science to both support environmental monitoring and promote sustainability education among younger generations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protecting Coastal Ecosystems: Sustainable Approaches to Managing Marine Pollution)
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14 pages, 507 KiB  
Article
Preliminary Findings on the Bioaccumulation and Marine Trophic Transfer of the Antifouling Biocide DCOIT in Soluble and Nanostructured Forms
by Bruno Galvão de Campos, Denis Moledo de Souza Abessa and Roberto Martins
Sustainability 2024, 16(18), 7996; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16187996 - 13 Sep 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1737
Abstract
DCOIT (4,5-Dichloro-2-octylisothiazol-3(2H)-one) is a widely used antifouling biocide that emerged after the ban on tributyltin. It has been immobilized in nanostructured silica (SiNC–DCOIT) to reduce its hazard in maritime coatings. This study aimed to compare the bioaccumulation, trophic transfer, and biomagnification of DCOIT [...] Read more.
DCOIT (4,5-Dichloro-2-octylisothiazol-3(2H)-one) is a widely used antifouling biocide that emerged after the ban on tributyltin. It has been immobilized in nanostructured silica (SiNC–DCOIT) to reduce its hazard in maritime coatings. This study aimed to compare the bioaccumulation, trophic transfer, and biomagnification of DCOIT in its soluble and nanostructured forms on mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis, using three different uptake routes: aqueous exposure (i.e., contaminated seawater), dietary exposure (i.e., microalgae Tetraselmis chuii as a contaminated food), and both contaminated food and seawater. DCOIT was determined on water and tissues after 1, 3, and 24 h of uptake and after 72 h of depuration. Briefly, mussels were able to rapidly uptake and metabolize DCOIT and SiNC–DCOIT. Both compounds were non-bioaccumulative, as their bioconcentration and bioaccumulation factor values were lower than 2000. However, the predator–prey biomagnification factors indicated that both forms could be transferred across the trophic web. Therefore, while our findings provide further insight into the environmental risk assessment of DCOIT and SiNC–DCOIT, they do not rule out the possibility of long-term DCOIT bioaccumulation, particularly in areas with constant DCOIT influx. Further studies are thus needed using larger experimental designs and under continuous exposure scenarios to increase the sustainability of the innovative nanomaterial. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Protecting Coastal Ecosystems: Sustainable Approaches to Managing Marine Pollution)
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