Obama administration approves E15 warning label

The Obama administration has reportedly approved a pump label to warn drivers that they are about to fuel their vehicles with E15 (gasoline blended with 15 percent ethanol content).

Back in October of 2010, when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the use of E15, it set off a wave of criticism that drivers would have trouble at the pump discerning which fuel was suitable for their vehicles. To remedy the situation, the EPA issued an orange warning label that will be applied to pumps.

Now that the new label has been approved, E15 could be available nationwide by the end of September. However, the EPA has to officially register E15 before it can be sold and this doesn't mean that E10 gasoline, which has been widely used throughout the U.S. for years, will vanish any time soon. It's believed that many gas stations will continue to sell E10, rather than investing in separate E15 storage tanks and pumps. E15 is currently approved for use in Model Year 2001 and newer vehicles.

Note: We're still digging around for an image of the EPA's updated E15 warning label. The one pictured is a draft version.

[Source: Automotive News – sub. req.]