Tony McNeal, P.E., recipient of the FSBPA Jim Purpura/T.Y. Chiu Engineering Award with Michael Barnett

Tony McNeal has served the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for 34 years and will be retiring in 2020 as the Administrator of the Coastal Construction Control Line Program that regulates construction along Florida's 825 miles of coastline.  It is a huge job, high stakes, and occasionally -- maybe more than occasionally -- contentious.  Tony was the CCL Program lead for 20 years during his tenure at FDEP, a remarkable accomplishment.  Mike Barnett, former Chief of the FDEP Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems, nominated Tony for this prestigious award, and joins Tony on the American Shoreline Podcast.  It's a long back from two of Florida's best known and respected state agency professionals.  We talk about Tony's career in public service, the tough decisions coastal regulators face, and what it takes to handle this challenging job so successfully and for so long.   Congratulations Tony from Coastal News Today and the American Shoreline Podcast Network and thank you for all the years of leadership, hard work, and judgement to protect the beaches and dunes of Florida.