BP oil spill

The Flame Refluxer is essentially a big copper blanket: think Brillo pad of wool sandwiched between mesh. Using it while burning off oil yields less air pollution and residue that harms marine life.

Ten years ago Hurricane Katrina devastated Bayou la Batre on the Alabama Gulf Coast. Five years later came the BP oil spill. The hardscrabble fishing hamlet has never recovered.

An effort is underway to figure out how the BP oil spill harmed the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. The damage may not be as dire as feared, but researchers say it's too soon to know the long-term impacts.

The 2010 explosion at the Deepwater Horizon rig set off an environmental and economic catastrophe. Towns and ecosystems along the Gulf Coast are still struggling to rebound.

Environmentalists are suing to stop Alabama from using nearly $60 million in BP oil spill recovery funds to build a new hotel on the beach. The project is one of dozens underway across the region.