Associate Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences Annette Engel was featured in an article by the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative for her work studying the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on coastal Louisiana. The researchers in the consortium “Effects of the Macondo Oil Spill on Coastal Ecosystems” have a rare opportunity to not only learn about how oil stresses marshes, but how these ecosystems ‘work. Researchers collect water and marine life samples to study microbial communities along the marsh edge searching for indicators of marsh health and responses to oiling.