Exxon Knew of MTBE Contamination Threat in 1984, State Says

ExxonMobil Corp. knew that incidents of groundwater contamination would triple if it added a chemical to gasoline that makes the fuel burn more cleanly, a lawyer for New Hampshire said at the opening of an $816 million trial.

ExxonMobil and Citgo Petroleum Corp. are the last holdouts in the suit by New Hampshire alleging oil companies knew the chemical would contaminate groundwater. The state court trial, which began yesterday in Concord, pits the New Hampshire’s environmental claims against assertions by companies that they were simply complying with federal pollution standards.