Forhundredsofyears,farmersandfishingcommunitiesmaintainedtheinlettoEllisvilleMarsh,apicturesquepieceofcoastlinetenmilessouthofPlymouth,Massachusetts.Recognizedasoneofthemostenvironmentallysensitiveandecologicallyvaluableplacesinthestate,thesaltmarshandestuaryarehometoadiversearrayofwildlifeandarangeofhabitats,includinglow-tidemudflats,asaltwaterpond,intertidalzone,andfieldsoftallmarshgrass.Afteragriculturalandfishingactivitiesfadedawayinthelatetwentiethcentury,itsoonbecameapparentthatprotectingthemarshanditssurroundingsfromdevelopmentwouldnotbeenoughtorestorethenaturalequilibriumthathadbeenlostwhentheinletbecameblocked.Havingwitnessedgovernmentinactionovertheyears,EricP.CodyandfourotherlocalsfoundedtheFriendsofEllisvilleMarshin2007toaddresserosion,revivetidalflows,andrevitalizefisheriesandwildlifeinthefaceofclimatechange.RescuingEllisvilleMarshpresentsthepowerfulcasestudyofbackyardactivism,tellingthestoryofacommunitythatbondedwithanaturalplaceanddecidedtofightforit.
