Great news for foodies who enjoy eating scallops in Florida.

Seagrass beds in Tampa Bay have made a remarkable comeback, recovering from years of pollution and dredging that sullied the water the 1960s and 70s. With water quality plummeting, fish and wildlife populations began to decline.

Now, after two decades of restoration, the folks involved in the revival effort have actually surpassed the goal they set twenty years back.

Seagrass beds in Tampa Bay have made a remarkable comeback, recovering from years of pollution and dredging that sullied the water the 1960s and 70s. With water quality plummeting, fish and wildlife populations began to decline.

Now, after two decades of restoration, the folks involved in the revival effort have actually surpassed the goal they set twenty years back.

"I can't think of another estuary around the county, if not the world, where we've seen such a dramatic improvement of water quality," Peter Clark, CEO of Tampa Bay Watch, told the Tampa Bay Tribune.

The survey last year counted 40,295 acres of healthy seagrass, the most Tampa Bay has seen since 1950 and a 16% improvement over the previous survey completed in 2012.

Fisheries and scallop beds throughout the estuary are bouncing back and luring other marine life to the Bay.

Photo by MsDee, CC