MTBE 'Safe Harbor' Provision Dropped from Energy Bill

摘要

The water industry praised a recent action by US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Pete Domenici (R-NM) to drop from a pending energy bill a controversial "safe harbor" provision for a fuel additive blamed for water contamination in more than two dozen states. The provision extended product liability relief to companies that produce methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), a gasoline additive used for clean fuel formulations in cities with smog problems.