NOAA’s new ocean economy dataset, the Open Economics: National Ocean Watch, from the National Ocean Service’s Office for Coastal Management, shows the increasing strength of the marine economy in the US From 2021-2024, the marine economy added over 500,000 jobs and total wages grew by 32%.
The industry employs approximately 3.7 million people, with tourism and recreation as the largest marine sector, employing 2.6 million people. Marine transportation, ship and boat building, offshore mineral resources, and marine construction make up some of the other largest sectors driving growth. The states with the largest number of marine economy workers are Florida, California, and New York.
Open ENOW estimates economic activity in six marine sectors. This graph shows a sharp drop in coastal tourism and recreation employment in 2020, followed by strong growth in subsequent years. (Image credit: NOAA)
This new data is publicly available and accessible on the Digital Coast website and captures national and state-level data. The dataset also features time-series data on employment, establishments, wages, and contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) in multiple economic sectors that are dependent on the oceans and Great Lakes.
This latest dataset provides estimates for the years 2001-2024, while the previous Economics: National Ocean Watch dataset covers the years 2005-2021. This current dataset also draws on less detailed data than the previous one and uses imputed values to fill in data gaps. Both datasets are valuable tools for coastal managers and planners who want to understand economic activities that depend on the ocean and Great Lakes.
The Open Economics: National Ocean Watch dataset is produced by NOAA in partnership with the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the US Census Bureau.
