ISTR that the EPA was wanting an oxygenate additive in the late 70's/early 80s to reduce emissions from carbureted vehicles (of which almost all vehicles were at that time) and the petro industry developed and starting including MTBE as their oxygenating additive.

Then, at some point, the narrative was heard that MTBE was being found in groundwater and therefore a safer additive was needed - with that safer additive being EtOH. Plus EtOH was "renewable" and was good for the big Ag industry as well as being less injurious to groundwater than MTBE was.

Clearly there are some logical problems with all of this:

1. If MTBE was in the groundwater then gasoline would have also had to have been there too - as they both would have been from leaking USTs. Switching to EtOH as the additive would do nothing to eliminate the gasoline that was leaking underground.

2. Closed-loop fuel injection was just around the corner and would eliminate the need for the extra oxygenate anyway - yet we still have it 30 years later.

I could be all washed up on my recollection and look forward to hearing from Matt Colie and the others who were active in the industry at the time.

--Jim

Hey Matt, what have you got to say about Hexavalent Chromium Erin
Brockovich made a career out of it, as I remember.
Jim Hupy