Back in 2010, more than 750 million litres of crude oil was pumped into the Gulf of Mexico during the infamous BP Oil Spill. Close to $40 billion was spent in fines, cleanup costs and settlements. Over 8000 animals were reported dead in the initial six months and studies showed that the use of chemical dispersants was causing more harm than good. Is it possible that the development of a new polymer right here in Australia could potentially help avoid such a disaster from happening again? We were joined by Dr Justin Chalker, whose laboratory at Flinders University led the development of this polymer.