It's becoming clear...in the case of MMT it was a US firm selling to Canada.
In the case of MTBE Canadian firm was selling to the US. Enviro concerns
raised on both chemicals by the respective buyers with the same results;
threatened leagal action against the buyer buy the seller as a result of
certain trade stipulations in the NAFTA accords. Turnabout is fair play. No
signatory being exempt form the accords. Whether or not the accords are
reasonable is besides the point. Idiocy as far as I'm concerned. Decision
should be based on accepted scienctific evidence of harm. I thought the
discussion concrerned the chemical itself. Sick of politics and politicains
of every ilk.
Deano
-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Hooper [mailto:mhooper@pix-cinema.com]
Sent: Thursday, March 27, 2003 5:48 AM
To: 'Ryoung@navcomtech.com'; Paige, Dean; 'triumphs@autox.team.net'
Subject: RE: MMT (was Octane Boosters) (no LBC at all)
Randall:
Ignoring the specific technical issue, what was presented on the CBC (which
is very well regarded in its documentary work) and several other
organisations was the following legal complication:
NAFTA states that a signatory country cannot change the laws of the country
in such a way as to put in peril the existence of a company in another
signatory.
The Virginia (memory?) firm that sells whatever chemical it is, sells it
only to Canada as the US doesn't trust the stuff. Canada listened to the US
medical advice and said "we don't trust it either" and began moving to
eliminate the chemical from gasoline. The firm pressed a suit stating that
since the vast majority of its revenue is from the sale of this chemical to
Canada they would be in effect put out of business by the proposed law and
that thus the law could not be passed.
The point here is that it is completely irrelevent which chemical was
involved or what the reasoning behind the medical decision. A small (but
rich) company becomes dependent upon selling something to a market in
another country. The other country suddenly has no right to protect the
health of its 30 million citizens due to the mercantile rights of a few
people. Using this as precedent all one has to do is create a separate LLC
for each product sold by a firm to a specific country and thus completely
invalidate the entire testing and response ability of another country. That
is pure Shite.
The whole notion is based upon some sort of Grandfather clause concept that
all is good now and that no mistakes will ever be made in product testing.
It is a testament to the cowardice and villainous dishonour of politicians
on both sides of these closely linked countries that such a situation could
occur and be enforced.
I can tell you that if the roles were reversed and it had been a Canadian
firm telling the United states that, as they are the sole market for their
arsenic flavoured corn flakes with real arsenic in every spoonful (who knew
it was dangerous?), protective laws could not be passed, the subject would
not even have been discussed in laughter never mind seriously concerning the
constitutional authorities of the land.
(rant mode off)
Mark
-----Original Message-----
From: Paige, Dean [mailto:DPaige@ci.santa-rosa.ca.us]
Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 7:26 PM
To: 'triumphs@autox.team.net'
Subject: FW: MMT (was Octane Boosters) (increasingly little LBC)
-----Original Message-----
From: Paige, Dean
Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 4:25 PM
To: 'Randall Young'; TR List
Subject: RE: MMT (was Octane Boosters) (increasingly little LBC)
I stand corrected. I think what the Canadian manufacturer of MTBE did was to
claim that it was illegal under the NAFTA Accords and threatened to sue for
Calif. which is phasing in a ban on the stuff which was shown to be
polluting ground water and drinking water wells all over the place.
Close but no cigar,
Deano
-----Original Message-----
From: Randall Young [mailto:ryoung@navcomtech.com]
Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2003 3:24 PM
To: TR List
Subject: RE: MMT (was Octane Boosters) (increasingly little LBC)
Mark Hooper asked :
> Is this the same poison that the company has used the free trade agreement
> with Canada to block Canadians removing from the gasoline due to health
> risks?
Dean Paige replied :
> No, that would be methyl tertial butyl ether (MTBE).
There was actually a similar flap over MMT ... but whether it counts as a
poison or not is highly debatable. The concern is over Manganese, which is
actually an essential trace element for humans (unlike lead), and is used in
far smaller concentrations than lead. It seems the stuff is fairly benign
when ingested, any excess just passes through. Breathing it is a bit more
dangerous; workers who are constantly exposed to very high airborne levels
of the stuff for many years do develop a neurological disorder similar to
Parkinson's. However, the last study I read said that the disorder appeared
to be reversible; that is it went away when the subjects were no longer
exposed. And, the concentration required to cause this disorder was some
5000 times the maximum concentration expected (again obviously depending on
whose numbers you believe) if every car on the road was using MMT; and you
were standing in a long, busy, poorly ventilated tunnel.
The Canadian issue was not health concerns, but rather that MMT is said to
interfere with some emission control devices (like catalytic converters and
O2 sensors). However, that conclusion was based on a report done by Ford,
that was later found to be fraudulent by the US EPA (and Ford paid a fine
for submitting it). The NAFTA issue was never decided, the Canadian
government withdrew the bill.
This information, and more, are in the links I posted :
> FWIW, here's the US EPA's comments on it's use as a gasoline additive :
> http://www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/fuels/additive/mmt_cmts.htm
> and a not-so-brief history of it's rather checkered past:
> http://www.nrtee-trnee.ca/eng/programs/Current_Programs/Health/MMT_e.htm
BTW, I just checked, the vitamins I take every day contain 3.5mg of
manganese. Somehow, I don't think it's poisonous <g>
Randall
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