Tom Bayles
WGCU Environmental ReporterTom Bayles is WGCU's Senior Environmental Reporter and a 25-year veteran journalist in Florida. Before his tenure at WGCU Public Media, he worked for The New York Times Co. in Sarasota, the Associated Press in Miami and Tallahassee, and the Tampa Bay Times in Clearwater. He earned a master's in journalism and a bachelor's in education, both from the University of South Florida. The proud father of three sons, Bayles spends his free time fishing along the Southwest Florida coast in his 20-foot Aquasport with his Whippet pup, Spencer.
Bayles’ top awards include the Gold Medal for Public Service for Investigative Reporting from the Florida Society of News Editors, the Waldo Proffitt Award for Excellence in Environmental Journalism in Florida, and being named the Sunshine State’s top environmental journalist by the Florida Press Club and FSNE. Bayles has been nominated four times for a Pulitzer Prize.
Email: tbayles@wgcu.org
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Using fertilizer is best in moderation, but some people overdo it so communities throughout Southwest Florida have bans against using fertilizers during rain-prone summer, -
Planning for, and recovering from, things that pushed wetlands, beaches, rivers, and other natural systems beyond that ability to quickly bounce back is the focus of the sixth annual Southwest Florida Resiliency Summit Southwest Florida Resiliency Summit in Punta Gorda. -
Florida Gulf Coast University researchers are investigating why nearby barrier islands can respond differently to the same storm to give those communities a blueprint for best hurricane protection -
Audubon Florida’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary draws visitors from around the world for its top attractions -
The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season is poised to take the record for the furthest into the season before a hurricane formed. -
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida believes successful flood prevention does not equal lining the coast with increasingly taller seawalls -
Researchers found sea-level rise can cause fewer jobs, fewer businesses, and slower job growth. -
A very strong El Niño can knock back the drought that has had a grip on South Florida since early 2025, and ease the wildfire threat. Or not. -
Google scientists have led the effort to build a better hurricane prediction model using artificial intelligence. -
500 sea turtle nests were moved by experts at Mote Marine to make way for the new sand.
