A three-year ban on new gas stations in rural parts of Harford County may be rescinded if certain fuel additives prone to polluting wells are no longer in use.

A group aimed at evaluating the situation and reviewing the law convened for the first time Tuesday in Bel Air, tasked with determining if pollution by methyl-tertiary butyl ether, also known as MTBE, was still occurring in Maryland. Most suppliers have voluntarily replaced MTBE, which helped gas burn better and kept engines from knocking, with ethanol.

“It’s been stated by some individuals that MTBE may still be present in some  higher grades of gasoline,” said Roman Ratych, a member of the Greater Fallston Association who advocated for the ban in 2005. He was not sure of what grades or even whether such gas was available commercially, so investigating those claims was one of the group’s first priorities.

Ratych had been selected as the group’s chairman, but said Wednesday that he would decline the position to avoid any percieved conflict of interest between his current task and his past advocacy.

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Michael Elder, an environmental lawyer for the Department of Justice and vice-chair of the group, said they would hear testimony from the Maryland Department of the Environment, local health departments and citizens. The group also is reaching out to representatives of the only refinery producing MTBE, to determine if any was still being used locally.

Almost 90 percent of Maryland’s gasoline is pumped in by one company, which has promised not to include   in its product, Ratych said.

“It’s that other 10 percent we’re not sure about,” he said.

“If we determine it’s not an additive currently used in Maryland, then we’ll look at Maryland’s regulations on underground storage tanks and gas stations to determine if there’s still any risk to public health,” Elder said.

County Council President Billy Boniface said his constituents in the northern parts of Harford stood on both sides of the issue.

“I’ve seen people against lifting the ban, who feel a lot safer that their wells won’t run the risk of new contaminations, and I’ve seen people who say it’s ridiculous ... to drive 15 miles to put gas in their vehicles,” Boniface said.

The next meeting of the task force is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Aug. 28 in the County Council chambers.

msantoni@baltimoreexaminer.com