On April 20, 2010, an explosion rocked the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform situated in the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in the tragic loss of 11 lives. The incident caused the platform to sink and initiated a devastating oil spill from the well. Over the course of three months before containment, an estimated 134 million gallons of oil poured into the Gulf, marking the most significant offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

The aftermath of the disaster prompted an assessment of its impacts, including the loss of recreational opportunities and damages to various natural resources such as fish, bottom-dwelling species, nearshore ecosystems, birds, sea turtles, and marine mammals. The trustees conducted a thorough examination through the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) to determine the extent of restoration needed to return the Gulf to its pre-spill condition and to address the loss of natural resource services while compensating the public. The Deepwater Horizon spill triggered the largest evaluation ever conducted on the damage inflicted upon natural resources.

Sorption Global Technologies is pioneering environmental technology utilizing a novel generation of graphene-based sorption systems designed to remediate oil spills. The company is actively developing effective, efficient, and environmentally friendly products for oil spill cleanup.