MICHAEL CASEY and ANDREW SELSKY Associated Press DURHAM, N.H. (AP) — Peering over the side of his skiff anchored in the middle of New Hampshire's Great Bay, Fred Short liked what he saw. Just below the surface, the 69-year-old marine ecologist noticed beds of bright green seagrass swaying in the waist-deep water. It was the latest sign that these plants with ribbon-like strands, which had declined up to 80% since the 1990s, were starting to bounce back with improved water quality. Seven rivers carry pollution from 52 communities in New Hampshire and Maine into the 1,020-square-mile (2,650-square-kilometer) bay. "It actually looks better than it did last year at this time and better than has in many years," said Short, a noted seagrass expert who coordinates the monitoring of 135 sit
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