Around the Region
NJ will not ban a probable cancer-causing ingredient in gasoline,
MBTE, even though the substance has been found in dangerous levels in wells
throughout the state. The NJ Dept. of Environmental Protection said that
it would be "too difficult" to order NJ's gasoline manufacturers
to replace MTBE, which oxygenates gas to reduce smog. Although gas is a
brew of likely carcinogens, MTBE is considered especially dangerous because
it is water soluble. In clinical studies, it has caused cancer in rats
and mice, and it has been linked to headaches, nausea and dizziness in
humans. In a 1998 report, NJ regulators found 400 private wells contaminated
with MTBE. Asbury Park Press
