39th Environmental Permitting Summer School

John Coates currently serves as the Director of the Division of Water Resource Management, for the Department of Environmental Protection. He has a combination of biology, chemistry, and engineering degrees, and is licensed as a civil engineer in Florida. John started working in the environmental profession in 1986 and worked in consulting previously.  He has been with the Department for the better part of the last 29 years. John has worked primarily with water resource, waste management, and mining programs throughout his professional career. John believes in the value of communication and problem solving as some of the best tools which can support sustainable development while protecting our natural resources.