POSCO Teams Up with Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation to Improve Marine Environment of Uninhabited Islands

Building a Sustainable Marine Ecosystem Model Through Public-Private Cooperation

On May 11, POSCO announced that it will join hands with the Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation to launch full-scale cleanup activities aimed at improving the marine environment of uninhabited islands.

On April 22, POSCO signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation for "Marine Environmental Improvement of Uninhabited Islands in Collaboration with the Private Sector," and began building a sustainable model for marine ecosystem protection through public-private cooperation. The two sides plan to jointly carry out ▲ regular cleanup activities for uninhabited islands and adjacent waters ▲ joint public-private marine cleanup campaigns ▲ public awareness campaigns to improve the marine environment.

A scene of the Clean Ocean Volunteer Group collecting the pirate creature, the crown-of-thorns starfish, off the coast of Pohang. POSCO

With this agreement, the POSCO Clean Ocean Volunteer Group will expand its activities beyond its Pohang and Gwangyang worksites to uninhabited islands in the Gyeongsang and Jeolla regions. As its first initiative, the group will conduct large-scale cleanup activities on uninhabited islands near Guman-ri in Pohang and on Samdo in Goheung, Jeollanam-do, ahead of "Ocean Day" on May 31.

The POSCO Clean Ocean Volunteer Group, launched in 2009 as a talent-based volunteer group of POSCO employees, has involved more than 24,000 participants to date, collecting a cumulative total of 2,468 tons of marine waste. Notably, about 180 volunteers with diver certifications have been leading efforts to collect underwater debris and marine pests, helping to preserve marine biodiversity and support local fishermen.

The Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation is the nation's only public agency specializing in the marine environment, and has been conducting a marine waste collection project on uninhabited islands since 2023. This collaboration is significant in that it strengthens the public-private cooperation framework, going beyond public sector-led collection activities.

POSCO is also continuously pursuing the installation of "Triton" artificial reefs and the creation of marine forests to prevent ocean desertification through public-private cooperation. Previously, in November 2024, POSCO and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries created a 0.5-hectare (5,000-square-meter) marine forest in the Gupyung 1-ri and Mopori waters off Pohang. In the Gwangyang Bay area, the company is cultivating seagrass beds, a core "blue carbon" resource with up to 50 times the carbon absorption rate of terrestrial forests. After transplanting 1,000 seagrass shoots in November last year, an additional 10,000 shoots were transplanted in April in collaboration with Gwangyang City and the local community around Jangnae Port. POSCO plans to further expand cooperation with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and local governments to distribute marine fertilizers that promote the germination and growth of seaweeds.

A POSCO official stated, "We will strengthen institutional and technological cooperation to ensure that the public-private cooperation structure is not just temporary," adding, "We aim to establish a long-term mutually beneficial model that makes a tangible contribution to marine environmental protection and carbon reduction."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.