Leaded-gasoline ADDITIVES still contaminate groundwater

Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent to address the methyl tert-butyl ether problem, but two other gasoline additives that are far more toxic have been mostly overlooked in the U.S. Ethylene dibromide and 1,2-dichloroethane were used from the 1920s through the 1980s and are probable human carcinogens. They are among the most commonly detected contaminants in U.S. public drinking-water systems that rely on groundwater-at least in the systems that have been tested. Ronald W. Falta, Nimeesha Bulsara, James K. Henderson, and Richard A. Mayer at Clemson University explain the scope of the situation. © 2005 American Chemical Society.