1.0 Introduction

In February 2001, the Federal Minister of the Environment published a Notice of Intent on Cleaner Vehicles, Engines and Fuels, laying out the federal agenda to address related environmental issues. One item addressed in the Notice was the use of MTBE in Canadian gasoline. Specifically, the Notice indicated that:

• the Minister would publish "a notice under paragraph 71(1)(b) of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA 1999) requesting information on usage and releases of MTBE"; and
• "following a review of the information, Environment Canada will consider whether further action in respect of MTBE is warranted".

The MTBE information gathering notice referred to above was published in the Canada Gazette on May 26, 2001. It required persons handling MTBE or gasoline containing MTBE to provide information to the Minister on use and releases of MTBE by July 31, 2001 (for full text of the Notice, see Appendix A).

This report is a summary of the information provided to Environment Canada in response to the Notice. The report also outlines the proposed path forward by the federal government to prevent future releases of MTBE.