The main thrust of the 60 Minutes program concerning MTBE was the fact that the EPA has known since 1980 that MTBE is a carcinogen and has polluted ground water wells across the nation to the extent that the water is unsafe for human consumption. The fact that MTBE is an insidious chemical should have prompted complete testing before it was forced on the American people. The contamination first started showing up on the east coast. I believe it was Long Island that had to have all of their water wells closed. All of Santa Monica's water wells are contaminated.
Drinking water has to be trucked in.
The list of water well contamination is too long for me to remember. 49 states are affected by the contamination. The MTBE, as I understand, was found to be leaking from underground fuel tanks in 1980. The dollar cost of the replacement tanks has forced most of the Independent gas station owners out of business nationwide, leaving the major oil companies with little competition for gas pricing. I learned from a commentary by one of the late Sunday night talk show hosts that prior to the introduction of MTBE in our gasoline, that underground fuel tank leakage was not a problem.