North Jeolla Special Self-Governing Province is establishing a system to continuously manage the entire process of preventing, monitoring, collecting, transporting, and treating marine waste.

The province announced on the 27th that it will establish the "2026 Marine Waste Management Implementation Plan" and invest a total of 6.5 billion won to promote an integrated management system where prevention, monitoring, collection, and treatment are organically linked, moving away from the existing purification-centered management approach.

First, a new "Public-Private Joint Clean-up Campaign for Marine Waste" involving fishermen and local communities will be launched to strengthen prevention activities such as improving awareness of marine environmental conservation. An amount of 1.35 billion won will be allocated to the "Vulnerable Coastal Waste Response Project" targeting coastlines where waste is frequently introduced, to establish a management system capable of continuous monitoring and immediate response.

Ongoing projects include the "In-Water Marine Waste Retrieval Operation during Fishing Activities (1.3 billion won)", the "Coastal Village Environmental Improvement Project (180 million won)" for enhancing rural fishing village environments, and the "Installation of Offshore Marine Waste Collection Stations (200 million won)" to increase efficiency in waste collection in coastal areas. The aim is to encourage voluntary participation from fishermen and strengthen on-site waste collection systems.

Simultaneously, marine waste collection and treatment projects tailored to the conditions of cities and counties such as Gunsan, Gochang, and Buan will be carried out. This includes enhancing regional response capabilities through projects like the Gunsan Coastal Cleanup Project, Gochang Coastal Environmental Improvement and Marine Waste Collection and Treatment, and Buan Marine Waste Collection and Treatment including in-water waste retrieval operations.

Plans include expanding offshore waste collection stations in coastal areas, installing CCTV in Gochang's Gusepo Port to monitor marine waste inflow situations in real-time, thereby establishing a system for monitoring unauthorized dumping and immediate response.

To address the large influx of river waste during concentrated summer rains through the Geum River dam, the province will participate in the "River Waste Management Governance" with Chungnam and Gunsan Marine Fisheries Administration to jointly share the burden of upper stream waste treatment and devise reduction measures.

Through this implementation plan, the province expects to create a safe fishing environment, contribute to expanding tourist inflows, and stimulate the local economy based on a clean marine environment.