On the edge of Tampa Bay, where mangrove forests meet open water and birds call from the treetops, lies a place that was never meant to exist. Robinson Preserve, a 700-acre coastal refuge in Manatee County, Florida, was once degraded farmland slated for development. Today, it is a thriving haven for fish, wildlife and people, a testament to what can happen when a community chooses to invest in the environment, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries.
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