New EPA Regulations to Limit Levels of Benzene in Gasoline
By Jennifer Griffith
Published on February 14, 2007
Put forth by the Environmental Protection Agency, the regulations place restrictions on the amount of benzene and other toxic hydrocarbon gases in gasoline produced after the year 2011.
The new order, called the Mobile Source Air Toxic Rule, also places restrictions on motor vehicle tailpipe emissions.
The EPA estimates 33,000 tons of reductions by the year 2015, reducing pollutants by up to 80 percent over the next two decades.
Gasoline and engine combustion are one of the largest sources of benzene in air pollution.
Currently, refineries that exceed federal limits on benzene are able to buy “credits” from other refineries that were well below the standard. The result is that some regions have greater concentrations of benzene and other toxic chemical polluting the air.
The Pacific Northwest and Rocky Mountain states have been allowed to have benzene levels above the federal standard in other regions since gasoline there has historically had higher levels of benzene.
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