What happens when petroleum products containing MTBE are released into the environment?
MTBE quickly evaporates from open containers and releases to impervious surfaces. If released to the ground, typically from leaking underground storage tanks or from overturned tanker trucks, the MTBE tends to move quickly through the soil, dissolve in the groundwater and flow with the same velocity as groundwater. Because MTBE has a much lower biodegradation rate than other gasoline compounds of concern, such as benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylene, it has the potential to travel considerable distances from the release site and be the first release contaminant to impact downgradient receptors.
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