Hawai'i's ocean-related activities account for more than 10 percent of the state's gross domestic product.

That's the finding of a report by the National Ocean Economic Program, which released a study on the relationship between the ocean and the U.S. economy.

It found Hawai'i's direct ocean economy generated $5.4 billion of activity in 2004, or 10.7 percent of the state's GDP.

The report comes from a compilation of economic statistics, demographics and other data tracking activities on land and in the sea. In 2007, four out of five U.S. residents lived in coastal states that generated 83 percent of the country's GDP, according to the report.

For Hawai'i, it looked at six sectors linked to the ocean, including marine transportation, tourism and recreation, commercial fishing and other living marine resources, marine construction, ship and boat building and mineral extraction.

It found these businesses employed 98,493 people, with the majority of these working in tourism and recreation. Total wages paid were $2.61 billion.

Hawai'i also led all states in terms of the percentage of people (15 percent) employed in ocean economy sectors.

The group released the report to coincide with Capitol Hill Ocean Week and included a message about threats to the ocean and coastal economies. These include climate change, sea acidification and sea-level rise.

"Our nation's economic recovery and stability depends on how we deal with the issue of climate change and what we do to protect valuable natural assets that serve to support the people and communities that live along our ocean and coastal areas as well as the entire nation," said Judith Kildow, director of the group.

The National Ocean Economic Program was founded in 1999 and is funded by federal, state, university, and private grants and contracts.