Honorable Mention, 2019

An artistic view of tiny plastic pellets called nurdles that are washing up on beaches all over the Gulf of Mexico and the world. The University of Texas Marine Science Institute’s Mission-Aransas Reserve initiated Nurdle Patrol, a major citizen science project where hundreds of volunteers use their day at the beach, in part, to collect samples of nurdles and report back the data. In identifying concentrations of plastic pellets and reporting their prevalence, people in the Nurdle Patrol are helping scientists gather information that will help regulatory agencies and researchers alike.

Credit:
Jace Tunnell
Director, Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve