The Coonamessett River in East Falmouth, MA has long been altered by humans, first with mills, and then with cranberry farming. This drastically depleted the historic herring run, from millions of fish per year to around 20-30,000. There are now plans to restore this river by removing the blockages and sand, re-channeling the river, adding woody debris, and allowing the natural wetland seedbank to bring back a healthy wetland ecosystem. This will benefit not only the herring and other fish like Eastern Brook Trout, but also other wetland species such as river otters, turtles and many birds. A corridor of conservation land will provide trail access along the entire river, and kiosks explaining the natural and human history are planned along the way.
This video describes the history, and hopes for the future of this important Cape Cod river.