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MTBE The goal is the <br /> Continued from 61 cleanup will cause <br /> contamination site in San the plume to shrink <br /> Joaquin County. The plume <br /> extended north of the property, and pull it back to <br /> as wide as a football field and as the Site." <br /> long as four. <br /> The gasoline additive was dis- — Laurie Cotulla, <br /> covered when gasoline-storage county environmental-health <br /> tanks were removed from a ser- program manager <br /> vice station on the southeast <br /> corner of the intersection,which <br /> is on county property. "So far, they haven't had any <br /> Twelve of 60 private wells in detections" of MTBE in well . <br /> that area were affected. water,she said. <br /> MTBE, or methyl tertiary Monitoring and treatment at <br /> butyl ether, was added to gaso- the source is ongoing. <br /> line statewide to reduce air pol- "They are still recovering a lot <br /> lution. It has been linked to of product — gasoline with <br /> cancer in animal studies and is <br /> being phased out. MTBE," Cotulla said. She noted <br /> that the well serving the station, <br /> Officials from the county <br /> Health Care Services Agency and plus an auto-repair shop and <br /> residents at the site said they vehicle-rental office at the site,is <br /> don't know of any health prob- safe and has "never been <br /> lems attributable to the plume. impacted"by the MTBE plume. <br /> But others living in the affected Officials hope both the <br /> neighborhood claim some resi- removal process,which involves <br /> dents have become sick and injecting air into the affected <br /> believe it's from the gas additive. water that causes MTBE to <br /> "It's not something we've vaporize before extraction and <br /> J t� found," said Troylene Sayler, a treatment at residential wells <br /> spokeswoman for the agency. reigns in the plume and its <br /> Residents initially were forced threat to public health. <br /> to rely on bottled water. Then, "The goal is the cleanup will <br /> officials from the county in fall <br /> 2000 hooked up properties to cause the plume to shrink and <br /> 1,000-gallon tanks positioned in Pull it back to the site," Cotulla <br /> residents' yards. Manteca pro- said. <br /> vided water for the tanks from She could not confirm last <br /> city fire hydrants. week how much the plume has <br /> Officials say it's a yearslong shrunk. <br /> process to clean up the mess Frank Guinta, who once <br /> and find a long-term water owned the property where the <br /> � source for residents. The city gi <br /> believed to have ori t <br /> considered annexing the MTBE is - <br /> acreage and hooking residents nated, is fronting the cleanup <br /> up to city water but found it too costs and has spent several hun- <br /> expensive, said Laurie Cotulla, dred thousand dollars. <br /> environmental-health program His costs can be reimbursed <br /> N # manager with the county. by the state,Cotulla said. <br /> The latest treatment device <br /> treats the water between the ■To reach Manteca Bureau Chief <br /> >�well and residence, she said. It Steve Hartsoe,phone 239-3324 or <br /> appears to be working. e-mail shartsoeOrecordnet.com <br />