States / Virginia
Virginia
59%
Population of State Living in Coastal Areas
$140 Billion
Coastal Employment
Annual Wages
30
Climate and Weather Disasters
(Affecting Virginia 2010 to 2018)*
Coastal Demographics
Of the total population of approximately 8.3 million in Virginia, 4.9 million people live in coastal portions of the state.
Coastal Economy
Coastal Virginia employs almost 2.3 million people annually, earning a total of approximately $140 billion. This equates to almost $344 billion in gross domestic product.
Natural Hazards
Seven billion-dollar weather disasters affected Virginia in 2018—and a total of 30 affected the state between 2010 and 2018. Severe storms made up the majority of these events, with a total of 15 impacting Virginia between 2010 and 2018. In May 2018, a derecho event—a widespread long-lived wind storm—caused significant high-wind damage in Virginia, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Massachusetts, and Connecticut, with total costs of $1.4 billion.

Sources:
American Community Survey Five-Year Estimates (NOAA Data)
*Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (NOAA Website)
(All economic and demographic facts represent the latest data available [2015] and are regularly updated as new data become available)
Making a Difference
in Virginia
Chesapeake Bay Initiative Educates Hundreds of Virginia Students
The Takeaway: Chesapeake Bay Research Reserve-Virginia partners with local teachers to educate students about the country’s largest watershed.
Learn MoreCold-Stun Alert Aids Fishery Managers and Seatrout Stocks
The Takeaway: The alerts’ real-time monitoring data comes from three research reserves in Virginia and South Carolina.
Learn MoreCollaboration Aids Fishermen and Offshore Wind Management
The Takeaway: Fine-scale maps of Virginia fishing locations will aid future planning efforts.
Learn MoreCouncil Approves Plan to Make Virginia Beach “Sea Level Wise”
The Takeaway: Six-year study details urgently needed adaptation strategies, complete with potential benefits, costs, and challenges.
Learn MoreEnvironmental Educators Tailor Lessons to Diverse Student Needs
The Takeaway: Students of the coast love to learn when educators reach them where they are—whether that’s online, in the field, or through the wisdom of their own culture and stewardship traditions.
Learn MoreEstuary Education Goes Virtual
The Takeaway: NOAA’s National Estuarine Research Reserve System provides online tours, activity books, and more to teachers and students.
Learn MoreFirst-Ever National Marsh Assessment Tool
The Takeaway: Research reserves determine methodology for calculating sea level rise impact on the marsh and test it in 16 locations. Methodology standardizes the effort and creates a national approach.
Learn MoreGroundbreaking Study Uses Reserves to Evaluate Restoration Success
The Takeaway: Newly standardized performance measures make it easier and more economical to evaluate wetland restoration projects.
Learn MoreHampton Roads’ Sea Level Rise Adaptation Advances on Multiple Fronts
The Takeaway: The area has several projects underway to help improve current conditions and plan for the future.
Learn MoreNOAA Expands Coastal Opportunities for People with Disabilities
The Takeaway: Creating sign language for “estuary” and other coastal terms, and trails that accommodate wheelchairs and the needs of the visually impaired—these are just two of the contributions from research reserves and coastal zone management programs.
Learn MoreNOAA Provides Assistance to Coastal Communities
The Takeaway: Some U.S. coastal communities have plentiful data for creating robust resilience plans. Others are struggling to catch up. NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management is focused on providing equal access to the data, tools, and expertise they deserve.
Learn MoreParasite-Host Findings Aid Knowledge of Temperature Impacts
The Takeaway: Research reserve data from seven states contributed to one of the first U.S. studies to quantify how temperature-parasite interactions affect the survival of both parasites and their hosts.
Learn MorePlan and Legislation Secure Economic Vitality of Working Waterfronts
The Takeaway: Five new bills will help promote and protect economic activity along Virginia’s waterfront communities.
Learn MoreProgram’s Leadership and Data Maps Lessen Ocean-Use Conflicts
The Takeaway: As offshore wind energy comes to the state, the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program helps a variety of sectors air concerns and document existing ocean uses.
Learn MoreStudy of 15 Research Reserves Finds Crabs Pose No Large-Scale Salt Marsh Threat
The Takeaway: While specific crab species can cause local damage, rising seas appear to be a bigger threat to salt marshes nationwide.
Learn MoreTeacher Workshop Makes Estuary Science Come Alive
The Takeaway: Virginia teachers take this priceless experience back to their classrooms and transfer knowledge to their students.
Learn MoreTool Reduces Ocean Conflicts
The Takeaway: Offering a cohesive approach to offshore management, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Ocean Action Plan aids industries connected to offshore energy, tourism, undersea cables, and marine traffic.
Learn MoreTowns Will Cut Flooding While Boosting Public Access and Compliance
The Takeaway: Virginia’s coastal towns will identify sites to protect and restore that fulfill a variety of needs.
Learn MoreVirginia Collaborative Promotes Economic Perks of Lower Chickahominy Conservation
The Takeaway: The Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program and partners—buoyed by evidence that conservation funnels millions of extra dollars into the local economy—have signed a memorandum of understanding that promotes ecotourism’s economic benefits and helps preserve Indigenous and ecological assets.
Learn MoreVirginia Features World’s Most Successful Eelgrass Restoration Project
The Takeaway: Project partners have grown this estuary resource from zero to 9,000 acres, thanks to continuous support from the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program.
Learn MoreVirginia Partnership Launches “Prevent Balloon Litter” Sites
The Takeaway: The state’s coastal zone management program and partners offer ideas to lessen the threat, spotlighting fun and expressive ways to celebrate without producing litter.
Learn MoreWebsite Shows People Where to Fish, Swim, and Play
The Takeaway: Providing public access information helps promote recreation and tourism, which fuels Virginia’s ocean economy.
Learn More