Eric Draper

Environmental finance & bike/pedestrian safety. Accomplished water, wildlife and climate advocate. Repurposed director of gold medal winning Fl Park Service.

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

One of the best moments of debate on property taxes and the environment. Rep. Cross was informed and strong in objecting to the bill.

[Rep. Lindsay Cross @LindsayCrossFL]

Crippling funding sources for essential services that Florida needs isn’t fiscal intelligence; it’s foolishness. These tax proposals would devastate the very water infrastructure projects and policies FL depends on, and communities like Shore Acres would feel the impacts first.

[Emily L. Mahoney @mahoneysthename]

NEW: The mysterious LLC behind the Guana preserve land swap has withdrawn its proposal after facing steep opposition, days before what was expected to be a raucous meeting of the council that had to review it. @MaxChesnes https://t.co/NJ1C7oiYGW

[Audubon Florida @AudubonFL]

Great news!
The applicant has withdrawn their Guana proposal and the item has been removed from the Acquisition and Restoration Council meeting agenda. Stay tuned for updates via our Advocate newsletter: https://t.co/CUE8VfIn8G

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

Set this @MikeGrunwald essay aside to read carefully and argue with its headline and content, but his calculations and refutations hold up. As does the conclusion - insist (in food production) on less mess.

[Michael Grunwald @MikeGrunwald]

Some jerk wrote a NYT essay claiming industrial agriculture is actually good for forests and the climate. That jerk is me! Here’s a free link: https://t.co/0TXhua6JtP

[Max Chesnes @MaxChesnes]

NEW: Earlier this year, southeast Florida’s largest state park had an unusual visitor: famed golfer Jack Nicklaus.

He wasn’t visiting for leisure. He was there to see if he could build golf courses.

He left the park convinced it could be done 1/
https://t.co/mYZ6kHzZ8c

[Emily L. Mahoney @mahoneysthename]

NEW: When the @TB_Times revealed the state was pursing golf, hotels, pickleball + more on 9 state parks, Florida was stunned.

How could officials make plans threatening beloved wild spaces in secret?

This is the story of how it happened. w/ @MaxChesnes: https://t.co/I1ixhgRXc3

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

More good state park reporting from @TB_Times @mahoneysthename @MaxChesnes

[Emily L. Mahoney @mahoneysthename]

Years before a secret plan to add golf courses to state parks would rock Florida, a clue about how it could unfold was dropped in conversation in Washington, D.C.

The event: A Republican donor dinner. The guest of honor: President Trump. w/ @MaxChesnes https://t.co/0n4pJLAlhT

[Friends of Florida @floridafriends]

"Only 1,500 acres remain of the freshwater marsh that once covered Southeast Florida, but it is the largest and most intact remnant of Florida's east coast savannas, according to its state park website." https://t.co/sI8hpAsGNH

[The Florida Phoenix @FLPhoenixNews]

“If they get away with this, they can get away with anything. Any piece of land becomes available for a trade to a developer.” #Florida #Environment #FlStateParks https://t.co/NCW7pm7ivG via @FLPhoenixNews

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

@craigtimes @FLPhoenixNews illustrates how Florida’s conservation lands are at risk when decisions are delegated and not given a public hearing. @SWFWMDmatters aka Sonny Vergara speaks up and @fl_native_plant Eugene Kelly counts protected tortoise burrows

[The Florida Phoenix @FLPhoenixNews]

“If they get away with this, they can get away with anything. Any piece of land becomes available for a trade to a developer.” #Florida #Environment #FlStateParks https://t.co/NCW7pm7ivG via @FLPhoenixNews

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

State parks proposal included pickleball, disc golf at Maclay Gardens, @CommishWelch @LeonCounty says wrong place. https://t.co/pR2MtVknin via @tdonline

[Joshua Ceballos @JoshCeb]

The workers of WLRN have come together with @sagaftra and made public our intention to unionize. We love where we work, and we want to be part of the conversation to make it better. We've asked management for voluntary recognition

Plz follow @WeMakeWLRN if you wanna support us!

[Jenny Staletovich @jenstaletovich]

Proud to stand with my colleagues as we work to make @WLRN a better place by joining @sagaftra … Please follow @WeMakeWLRN.

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

As a @TB_Times subscriber @markkatches poses an important question. @MaxChesnes and @mahoneysthename worked the phones and files and got sand in their shoes revealing park development and forest swap schemes. Without the light of good journalism bad decisions are easily made.

[Mark Katches @markkatches]

What might have happened in both these cases if not for local journalists?

Nothing.

My ⁦@TB_Times⁩ column about the importance of a vibrant local newsroom. ⁦ https://t.co/NEIISv4oM0

[Mark Katches @markkatches]

What might have happened in both these cases if not for local journalists?

Nothing.

My ⁦@TB_Times⁩ column about the importance of a vibrant local newsroom. ⁦ https://t.co/NEIISv4oM0

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

@Paula_Dockery Hard to believe this going on now.

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

High POM δ15N values, NO3- concentrations, and N:P ratios in the Kissimmee River suggest that expanding urbanization north of the lake represents an increasing human N source contributing to cyanobacterial blooms in Lake Okeechobee.
https://t.co/2ethnAmVCg

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

@Paula_Dockery knows how the laws work, wrote the laws to prevent @FlDeep @AshleyMoodyFL @jimmypat from giving conservation land to developers

[Paula Dockery @Paula_Dockery]

As the legislator who wrote and passed the environmental Florida Forever bill, this is not how conservation lands are supposed to be treated. The lands are to remain in conservation forever, thus the name.
There was a surplusing process provided but this isn't it

[Paula Dockery @Paula_Dockery]

As the legislator who wrote and passed the environmental Florida Forever bill, this is not how conservation lands are supposed to be treated. The lands are to remain in conservation forever, thus the name.
There was a surplusing process provided but this isn't it

[Eric Draper @EricDraper]

@TB_Times @MaxChesnes @mahoneysthename @fl_native_plant visit the controversial land trade parcels. Better to get mud on your boots than be part of a dirty land scam. AshleyMoodyFL @JimmyPatronis did not do their homework.

[Max Chesnes @MaxChesnes]

This week @mahoneysthename and I drove to both land parcels involved in this deal. Enviro experts argue the land the state is giving up, part of the Withlacoochee State Forest, is more valuable for conservation

Left: Land the state is giving to Cabot
Right: The land it's getting