The new prize — dubbed the Wendy Schmidt Ocean Health X PRIZE in honor of its funder, who previously funded
the successful oil spill cleanup prize that offered solutions to disasters like Exxon Valdez or BP's Macondo blowout in the Gulf — offers $ 1 million to the team that invents the most accurate sensors as well as another $ 1 million to the team that devises the most affordable and easy - to - use sensors.
According to Scott Fields of the USCG Research and Development Center «in - situ burning is already a very
successful process, but we want to improve the air quality for our first responders who are engaged in
oil spill cleanup.»