COUNTIES FEAR LINGERING MTBE CONCERNS MAY DIVERT TANK CLEANUP FUNDS

Local government officials are mounting a lobbying campaign to ensure Congress lives up to its pledge outlined in recently approved energy legislation to increase cleanup funding for contamination from leaking underground storage tanks. At the same time, the officials are raising concerns that the funds could be diverted to clean up the controversial gasoline additive methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), which the officials say may not necessarily leak from underground tanks. The local officials are responding to energy legislation Congress...