MTBE ambient water quality criteria development: A public/private partnership

A public/private partnership was established in 1997, under the administrative oversight of the American Petroleum Institute (API), to develop aquatic toxicity data sufficient to calculate ambient water quality criteria for methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE), a gasoline oxygenate. The MTBE Water Quality Criteria Work Group consisted of representatives from private companies, trade associations, and USEPA. Funding was provided by the private entities, while aquatic biological/toxicological expertise was provided by industry and USEPA scientists. This public/private partnership constituted a nonadversarial, cost-effective, and efficient process for generating the toxicity data necessary for deriving freshwater and marine ambient water quality criteria. Existing aquatic toxicity data were evaluated for acceptability, consistent with USEPA guidance, and nineteen freshwater and marine tests were conducted by commercial laboratories as part of this effort to satisfy the federal criteria database requirements. D...