Fuel Additives

The increased use of ethanol could cost the government up to $900 million for food stamps and child nutrition programs, a congressional report says. Higher use of the corn-based fuel additive accounted for about 10% to 15% of the rise in food prices from April 2007 to April 2008, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. That translates into higher costs for food programs for the needy.

Something was wrong with Sally Ann. ? For months, she sputtered and choked, and Barry Treahy's remedies weren't working. He kept changing her fuel filters. Then he rebuilt her carburetor. Finally, he cut into her gas tank, cleaned out the mysterious caramel-colored gunk and patched her up -- twice.? Disaster struck on a summer day in San Diego, when Treahy's beloved 20-foot fishing boat was parked street side with the outer hull plug open to drain any residual water.

Fuel maker Tesoro Corp. on Tuesday sued California air regulators to block a new regulation that is expected to sharply boost ethanol use in the state's gasoline starting in 2010. The San Antonio-based company, which operates refineries in Los Angeles and the Bay Area city of Martinez, said the new fuel specifications could conflict with the state's push to cut greenhouse gas emissions and could have ramifications for the environment and U.S. food prices.

An initiative proposed for the November ballot would curb the abilities of plaintiffs to collect punitive damages in many product-liability cases. Supporters of the state measure, which include oil giant Chevron Corp. and the business-funded Civil Justice Assn. of California have launched a signature-gathering campaign to put the issue before voters.

In a stuffy Marina del Rey hotel meeting room Thursday night, Taylor Rivera spoke excitedly about a gas-saving additive he'd discovered a few months before. "I normally get 255 miles to the tank," said Rivera, who drives a Porsche SUV. After popping the gas additive BioPerformance Fuel into his tank several times, he said, "my mileage jumped up to 305. I didn't research it, but it worked for me, so I shared it with my friends."

Chevron Corp. is exploring investments in ethanol plants to guarantee steady supplies of the gasoline additive for its refineries. Chevron is examining whether larger ethanol distilleries could be built to lower production costs, Donald Paul, the company's chief technology officer, said in a telephone interview Monday. Chevron would be the first major oil company in 26 years to invest in U.S. production of the grain-based additive.

What do mothballs and toilet bowl deodorant bars have to do with drastically improving gas mileage? Nothing, say prosecutors who are going after a company that claims a small ball made with the chemicals in those products is a "gas pill" that can boost mileage 25% or more. Texas Atty. Gen. Greg Abbott sued BioPerformance Inc. on Wednesday, a day after a San Antonio judge signed a temporary restraining order forcing the Dallas company to cease allegedly deceptive acts and froze its assets.

"Boutique" gasoline blends to help states meet clean air rules are not a factor in higher prices as President Bush has suggested, says a draft of a study ordered by the White House. Although often cited as a reason for volatile gasoline prices, so-called "boutique fuels" have not caused unusual distribution problems or contributed to price increases, the report concludes. California is among the states that requires a unique fuel blend to combat air pollution.

High fuel prices are helping sales of products designed to boost gasoline mileage -- even though the government says they're not worth the money. The products include fuel additives and devices that fit inside an engine's air intake valve. Their makers claim they boost mileage by helping gasoline burn more efficiently. "The [Environmental Protection Agency] has tested hundreds of these products," said Laura DeMartino, a Federal Trade Commission attorney. "Even for the few that worked, the gas savings was so small it didn't justify the price."

Environmentalists and state officials scored a major victory Tuesday when Methanex Corp. of Canada announced it had lost its $970-million trade case challenging California's 1999 ban of the controversial gasoline additive MTBE. The case was viewed as a crucial test of state governments' ability to enforce health and environmental regulations that might conflict with international trade pacts. It was the first time a foreign firm had used the North American Free Trade Agreement to challenge a U.