Late last week, a federal appeals court supported a $104.7 million damage award against Exxon Mobil for pollution of New York City’s water with the gasoline additive methyl tertiary butyl ether, more commonly known as MTBE. MTBE is a gasoline addictive that the United States Environmental Protection Agency has deemed as a “possible human carcinogen”.

The court said the case against Exxon Mobil wasn’t weakened by the actual low level of detected MTBE pollution or that the city was not yet trying to use the affected water.

We’re not trying to pick on any company but are simply stating that polluters need to be held responsible for their own messes; otherwise it falls to the ratepayers to make up the difference in the long run.