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Innovative Strategies for Marine Conservation, Safety, and Sustainability

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 16 October 2026 | Viewed by 1918

Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Ocean Civil Engineering, Gyeongsang National University, Tongyeong, Republic of Korea
Interests: sustainable coastal and ocean engineering; coastal vulnerability analysis; secondary coastal hazard assessment; prediction of coastal and marine hazards; coastal disaster prevention; sustainable diving operations
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Guest Editor
Department of Fire Protection Engineering, Pukyong National University, Busan, Republic of Korea
Interests: machine learning applications in civil engineering; green Infra and low-impact development; risk assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Institute of Marine Industry, Gyeongsang National University, Tongyeong, Republic of Korea
Interests: marine accident response; diving operations risk assessment; subsea safety; diving technology; underwater search and rescue; safe diving planning and management

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, “Innovative Strategies for Marine Conservation, Safety, and Sustainability”, will focus on advancing integrated approaches that address ecological protection, maritime safety, and post-disaster recovery in marine and coastal environments. We invite interdisciplinary contributions from engineering, natural sciences, social sciences, and policy studies that propose new strategies, technologies, and frameworks for sustainable ocean use. The purpose of this Special Issue is to highlight how conservation, risk reduction, and resilience can be combined to create comprehensive solutions that go beyond prevention to include response and long-term restoration.

This Special Issue will supplement the existing literature by linking ecological sustainability with disaster management and operational safety—areas that are often studied separately. In doing so, it will emphasize advancements in sustainability practices in alignment with the United Nations 2030 Agenda, particularly those integrating scientific, socio-economic, and governance perspectives to strengthen the resilience and sustainable development of marine systems. 

Prof. Dr. Woo-Dong Lee
Prof. Dr. Taeyoon Kim
Dr. Myounghoon Kim
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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-anonymized 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 conservation
  • coastal and ocean sustainability
  • marine disaster response and recovery
  • maritime safety management
  • resilient coastal systems
  • marine ecological restoration
  • sustainable marine operations
  • marine risk assessment and preparedness

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

41 pages, 2266 KB  
Article
A Sustainable Framework for Planning and Management of Diving Operations for Underwater Search and Rescue in Strong Tidal Current Environments: Lessons from the Sewol Ferry Disaster
by Myounghoon Kim, Kyeongbeom Cheon, Yeonjoong Kim, Taeyoon Kim and Woo-Dong Lee
Sustainability 2025, 17(24), 11073; https://doi.org/10.3390/su172411073 - 10 Dec 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1596
Abstract
Maritime disasters pose substantial social and economic challenges and often require complex, resource-intensive search and rescue operations to minimize loss of life and damage to infrastructure. This study proposes a sustainable and quantitative framework for planning and managing underwater search and rescue operations [...] Read more.
Maritime disasters pose substantial social and economic challenges and often require complex, resource-intensive search and rescue operations to minimize loss of life and damage to infrastructure. This study proposes a sustainable and quantitative framework for planning and managing underwater search and rescue operations in strong tidal current environments, with reference to the Sewol ferry disaster. Hydrodynamic current predictions over a 31-day period were analyzed to determine tidal-induced diving cycles and to estimate the depth-specific diveable time (DAT) under safe operating limits of 1 knot for a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) and 1.5 knots for surface-supplied diving systems (SSDSs). Two representative dive profiles were developed: a no-decompression SCUBA plan for 26 m hull diving and a staged-decompression SSDS plan for 48 m seabed diving, considering oxygen toxicity and nitrogen narcosis limits. Workable time (WAT) analysis indicated SCUBA as optimal for hull tasks (WAT/DAT = 0.83), whereas the SSDS provided extended efficiency for deep-water operations. A redeployment model based on surface interval constraints reduced diver staffing requirements by approximately 28%. The proposed framework enhances the sustainability and resilience of marine disaster response by optimizing diver safety, operational efficiency, and resource management, contributing to sustainable marine safety systems and long-term emergency preparedness. Full article
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