MARITIME MONEY: The Crystal Coast has one of the highest concentrations in the U.S. of marine-science agencies doing oceanic research.

Carteret County's focus on marine biology started in 1860, when Army surgeons at Fort Macon established a field station to catalog animal and marine life in the area. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration established its Beaufort lab a few decades later in 1899, and the industry has continued to grow ever since.

There are now eight major marine-science research and education agencies in Carteret County, also known as the Crystal Coast. An economic-impact study done by the county in 2018 confirmed what many already knew: The scientific-research communities have a significantly positive economic impact on the coastal community of about 70,000 people.

This includes private-sector research facility Geodynamics LLC, a company that specializes in coastal and nearshore mapping through the use of various forms of sonar technology. Husband and wife duo Christopher and Sloan Freeman launched the company in 2003 and now work with 14 employees on contracts for government agencies including NOAA and the Navy.

Geodynamics uses hydrographic charting to monitor changes along the shoreline that could affect shipping and commerce into coastal cities. This includes subcontract work for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in cities along the eastern shoreline such as Baltimore and Savannah, some of which will contribute to port-deepening efforts. The small team recently won a bid to become a prime contractor for NOAA to provide chart updates that will "identify areas that are seeing a lot of change or are a hazard to commercial and recreational boaters," Sloan says.

When starting the business, Sloan says they considered Wilmington as a possible location but decided that Carteret County met all of their needs and offered a great "quality of life with a small-town feel" that they couldn't pass up.

"It's really a special place to have such a concentration of marine science in one place," Sloan says. "We find that the people that want to do our kind of work love it here, because we have great access to the natural environment and they tend to be 'water people.'"

"There is...