About ERIC STAATS

Information

Biography

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Eric caught the news bug as a teenager delivering the Peoria (Ill.) Journal Star and pinning banner headlines on his bedroom wall.

In 1989, he graduated from Indiana University, where he majored in journalism and history. After a summer stint working for the Scripps Howard News Service in Washington, D.C., Eric joined the Naples Daily News as a business and real estate reporter. He later covered Naples City Hall and worked as an assistant city editor.

Since 1996, he has written about growth, the environment and the oceans as a senior writer. When he's not at work, he enjoys walking his dogs and waiting for the Chicago Cubs to win the World Series.

■ A note about the photo: Wading a creek with fisheries researchers in Sarasota for the Daily News' "Gulf in Peril" series. Read it here.

Position History

Staff Writer
10/15/1989 - current

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Stories

Recent Work

Stories

VIDEO/PHOTOS: Clues found among snakes, gators but hunter still missing in Everglades Updated 11/19/2009 at 3:42 p.m.
Authorities shut down the Alligator Alley portion of Interstate 75 four times Thursday afternoon as helicopters dropped off search and rescue teams near mile-marker 75, where they believe lost hunter Jamey Mosch may be located.
Dead fish wash up at Naples beaches Published 11/18/2009 at 6:51 p.m.
Collier County is warning people with respiratory illnesses to avoid the beach.
911 CALL/VIDEO/PHOTOS: Searchers hear moaning, yet still haven't found missing man in Everglades Updated 11/18/2009 at 1:51 p.m.
Rescue crews heard moans coming from the wild which they believe is the 30-year-old man missing in the Everglades for over two days.
Volunteers post ‘No Dumping’ signs on storm drains in Moorings neighborhood Published 11/17/2009 at 6:55 p.m.
Most people don’t think a lot about storm drains until the water is rising in the street and getting closer to the front door. That is changing in the Moorings neighborhood in the city of Naples. A brigade of more ...
Collier County opening up Pepper Ranch for a day Published 11/15/2009 at 8:22 p.m.
The gates at the Pepper Ranch in Immokalee are swinging open for a day. “A Day at the Ranch,” set for Saturday, Nov. 21, is the best chance yet for visitors to set foot on the 2,500-acre preserve, a place ...
Developers face new water quality requirements Published 11/12/2009 at 7:55 p.m.
South Florida water managers issued a new memo Thursday about what developers should do to comply with water quality rules.
Red tide lingers off Collier coast Published 11/10/2009 at 5:08 p.m. 1 Comment
Water sampling Monday at Collier beaches found red tide at high enough levels at Seagate Beach and Big Marco Pass to cause respiratory irritation.
Dark cloud on FGCU’s solar project: University violates environmental permitting regulations Published 11/10/2009 at 2:50 p.m.
FGCU did not have the required permit to be able to place the concrete footers on which the rows of solar panels sit. After a site inspection Sept. 18, the South Florida Water Management District issued a stop-work order Sept. ...
PHOTOS: Owner looks to resurrect dome home on Cape Romano Published 11/06/2009 at 7:51 p.m. 1 Comment
The dome home on Cape Romano, within the boundaries of an aquatic preserve south of Marco Island, has been sliding into the Gulf of Mexico since it was built in 1981 as the sandy shoreline has shifted beneath it.
$53 million for Picayune Strand is first federal money for Everglades restoration Updated 11/04/2009 at 7:57 p.m.
The $53 million contract is being hailed as a historic milestone for federal involvement in Everglades restoration.