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January 22, 2009
New national marine fisheries’ report details 2006 landings By SUSAN WEST  The North Carolina commercial fishing industry generated $548 million in sales, $294 million in income, and supported 13,209 jobs in 2006, according to a new economic report released by National Marine Fisheries Service. Fish and shellfish landings in 2006 fetched fishermen in the state $70 million, substantially more than the dockside prices paid to fishermen in South Carolina, Georgia, or on the eastern coast of Florida. The 2006 landings revenue was 36 percent less than in 1997, corresponding to a 70 percent drop in landings in the state over the period. Revenue in Georgia declined 58 percent, to $11.5 million, during that period. Still, Georgia outshined North Carolina in terms of economic impact. The industry in Georgia contributed $638 million in sales and $326 in income to the economy in 2006 because of the state’s robust processing, wholesaling, and retailing sectors. Of the major commercial species in North Carolina, only tuna, flounder, and black sea bass landings in 2006 were higher than in 1997. While Tar Heel fishermen saw average prices for those species increase, the prices paid for clams, croaker, and shrimp in 2006 were less than in 1997, and the blue crab price was the same as in 1997. Nationally, the commercial fishing industry generated $103 billion in sales, $44 billion in income, and supported 1.5 million jobs in 2006. California, Florida, Massachusetts, Washington, and Alaska are the economic powerhouses in the national industry, according to information in the report. Recreational fishing in the U.S. generated $82 billion in sales, $24 billion in income, and supported 534,000 jobs in 2006. In North Carolina, $1.2 billion and 24,000 jobs were tied to the recreational fishing industry. More than two million anglers fished in North Carolina in 2006, according to the report, although that number is not easily reconciled with recreational license sales figures. In 2007, the first year of the state coastal recreational fishing license, only 474,135 licenses were sold. The full economic report, ‘Fisheries Economics of the United States 2006,” is available online at http://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/st5/publication/economics_communities.html. |
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