COASTAL 



TIDINGS 



North Carolina: 

 A Great Place to Visit 



North Carolina was the sixth-most-visited state in the 

 country in 2001 — just behind California, Florida, Texas, 

 Pennsylvania and New York — according to an annual wrap- 

 up report from the N.C. Division of Tourism. 



Shopping, beaches, outdoor activities and historical 

 places and museums — in that order — attracted about 43 

 million visitors. That translates to nearly $1 2 billion spent 

 across the state. Tourism generated $694.8 million in state 

 tax revenue, $397.6 million in local tax revenue, and directly 

 supported 196,400 jobs. 



Three coastal counties made the top 1 list in travel 

 impact among North Carolina's 100 counties: Dare County 

 ranked fourth in the state; New Hanover, eighth; and 

 Brunswick, tenth. 



Dare tourists spent $51 9.6 million dollars in 2001 — a 4 percent increase over the 

 previous year. The most popular tourist attractions in the county included the Cape Hatteras 

 National Seashore, the Wright Brothers National Memorial and Fort Raleigh National Park, 

 which includes the Lost Colony Outdoor Drama and the Elizabethan Gardens. 



Charlotte, the 2001 home to Discovery Place, the Panthers, Carowinds and the Hornets, 

 ranked first in travel impact. For county-by-county information about the economic impact of 

 tourism in North Carolina, go online to www.nccommerce.com/tourism. 



P.S. 



Net Gains Through Grants 



It's an ongoing dilemma for commer- 

 cial fishers: how to catch more marketable 

 fish while minimizing harm to other species. 



Glen Montgomery of Beaufort rose to 

 this challenge through a Fishery Resource 

 Grant to test ways to reduce bycatch in the 

 North Carolina inshore gill net flounder 

 fishery. FRG, which is funded by the N.C. 

 General Assembly and administered by 

 North Carolina Sea Grant, allows fishers 

 and others in seafood-related industries to 

 try out ideas for protecting or enhancing 

 coastal and marine resources. 



Flounder gill nets typically are 

 supported vertically by weights at lower 

 edges and floats along the tops. Height of 

 the nets is determined by tie-downs — 

 shorter, evenly spaced pieces of heavy twine 

 connected from top to bottom lines. 



While effective at catching flounder, 

 the nets also can entrap sea turtles, diving 

 birds and other bycatch. 



Montgomery reasoned that removing 

 float lines could reduce bycatch by keeping 

 nets close to the bottom — where the 

 flounder are. Through FRG, he tested his 

 nonfloat nets against nets with floats, both 

 with and without tie-downs. 



He found that nonfloat nets caught 

 significantly less nonmarketable bycatch, 

 slightly more flounder, and proved more 

 durable than nets with floats. He shared his 

 findings at the 2002 Commercial Fishing 

 Show. 



The deadline for proposals for the 2003 

 FRG funding cycle is Dec. 2. Research 

 priorities include new equipment or gear, 

 aquaculture/mariculture, environmental pilot 

 projects, and seafood technology. 



For more information on the FRG 

 program, visit the Sea Grant Web site at 

 www.ncsu.edu/seagrant and follow the 

 research link or call 919/515-2454. 



-CH. 



The Wright Brothers made their first flight 

 on the Outer Banks. 



First Flight 

 Celebration 



Almost 1 00 years ago — on Dec. 

 1 7, 1 903 - the Wright Brothers made 

 their famed flight over the sand dunes at 

 Kitty Hawk. 



To celebrate the Wright Brothers' 

 phenomenal feat, the First Flight 

 Centennial Celebration kicks off on 

 Tuesday, Dec. 1 7, 2002, at the Wright 

 Brothers National Memorial in Kill Devil 

 Hills with a flyby. 



Throughout 2003, events will be 

 held at the Wright Brothers National 

 Memorial, including a Summer Concert 

 with the U.S Coast Guard Band on June 

 9 and the Commemoration of Gliders 

 on Oct. 10-11. 



The National Park Service will host 

 the "grand finale" of the First Flight 

 Centennial Celebration at the Wright 

 Brothers National Memorial December 

 13-17, 2003. The celebration features 

 five days of exhibits, speakers and 

 demonstrations, including a re-enactment 

 of the first powered flight on Dec. 1 7, 

 at 10:35 a.m. and 2 p.m. 



For more information, visit the 

 Web: www.outerbanks.org or 

 www.centennialofflight.gov. — A.G. 



COASTWATCH S 



