Representing 9% of the land worldwide, the coastal zone is a highly populated part of the land, where economic and social growth continuously arise. An expected consequence of rapid development on the coastal zone is the creation of significant environmental pressures connected to human activities. Within this framework, the need to use the ecosystem services concept under the prism of sustainable development has risen to increase the provision of services to the people through an ecosystem approach using the human–environment interaction. The aim of this paper is to form an integrated approach for sustainable blue economy in a coastal ecosystem, using the SDGs and the ecosystem services frameworks and exploring the interlinkages of the ecosystem’s parameters from both sides. The outcome of this study is the formation of a decision-making tool for sustainable blue economy in a coastal ecosystem, which classifies the SDGs with a specific factor, according to their importance for the sustainable blue economy, and helps stakeholders prioritize their actions toward the achievement of sustainability in the specific ecosystem. A case study of this approach is Elefsis Gulf, a coastal ecosystem in the eastern Mediterranean, located 18 km from the historic city of Athens, Greece.

During the last decade, growing demand has prevailed for environmental protection and the application of sustainability principles toward the coastal environment. As the coastal zone constitutes one of the first recipients of the impacts of climate change due to the rise in sea level, integrated coastal zone management arises as a significant tool for the study of vulnerable coastal ecosystems. In combination with ICZM, the use of indicators and ecosystem services analysis couples all of the information, leading to an integrated approach and opportunities for a sustainable blue economy in coastal ecosystems. The aim of the present study is to form a protocol for a sustainable blue economy in the coastal zone, which will investigate and define the current capacity and the boundaries of a coastal ecosystem with specific characteristics of industrial activity, cultural heritage, and a protected natural environment. The case study for this research is the Gulf of Elefsis, a special sea basin in the eastern Mediterranean, located a short distance from the Athens metropolitan area. The Gulf of Elefsis is characterized by a developed coastal zone, which includes intense industrial activity, the ancient historical sights of Elefsis, the environmentally protected wetland of lake Koumoundourou, the town of Elefsis, a trade port, and growing shipbuilding activity.