The US Environmental Protection Agency temporarily waived federal clean gasoline requirements for 16 US states and the District of Columbia following the passage of Hurricane Sandy and associated storms. It granted the multistate waiver on Oct. 31 in coordination with the US Department of Energy.
The waiver applies to Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.
EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson determined that extreme and unusual supply circumstances as a result of the storm may result in temporary shortages of gasoline that complies with federal regulations in those states and Washington, DC.
The waiver allows the sale and distribution of conventional gasoline in areas where reformulated gasoline is required, and allows a number of additional states to mix reformulated and conventional gasoline to remove potential gasoline supply barriers in the region, EPA said.
The waiver followed one that EPA issued to New Jersey waiving clean diesel fuel requirements in the state, allowing the use of home heating oil in most pumps and generators in emergency service following the storm.
Contact Nick Snow at [email protected].