Maryland Attorney General Eyes Lawsuit Over Well Contamination by MTBE

"Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler, encouraged by whopping awards and settlements in other states, could join what one analyst calls a 'nationwide cascade' of litigation against the oil industry for its use years ago of a gasoline additive that has contaminated groundwater across the state.

Gansler's office is reviewing proposals from outside lawyers aimed at helping the state sue to recover the costs of dealing with the noxious, potentially cancer-causing additive methyl tertiary butyl ether, or MTBE.

Once widely used in gasoline, MTBE has fouled hundreds of household and public drinking-water wells across the state. Gansler's office has begun auditioning outside lawyers to help decide whether Maryland should join other jurisdictions in suing oil companies, gasoline refiners and marketers to pay for the cleanup."

Timothy B. Wheeler reports for the Baltimore Sun December 5, 2014.