Coastal North Carolina Socioeconomic Study. Volume 2. Base Case Characterization:Country Studies

摘要

A small area of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) along the northern NorthCarolina coast is a potential site for gas and/or oil exploration. The U.S. Department of the Interior funded research to characterized current conditions in areas along the North Carolina coast potentially affected by OCS-related activity, and to develop a design for documenting change in the region in the upcoming years. The study was designed to collect information suitable to characterize socioeconomic and sociocultural conditions along the North Carolina coast. These data show that the socioeconomic systems of this area are heavily dependent upon utilization of marine resources and access to a maritime environment perceived as relatively pristine. They also show that the character of this dependence varies considerably depending on the mix of a community's or region's reliance on tourism, commercial or recreational fisheries, military activity, retirement, or other transfer income sources. Voume II describes the study counties of Dare, Hyde, Carteret, Beaufort, and Pamlico and the land/water relationship involving human activities.