LEAD in petrol should be phased out in Africa and replaced with ethanol, a
cleaner and cheaper additive, says an environmental scientist. Africa has levels
of lead poisoning not seen in the US and Europe for 30 years.
Most of the world has phased out leaded petrol almost entirely. But poorer
states have been forced to use lead as an additive because it was the cheapest
option, usually importing it from Britain, says Valerie Thomas of Princeton
University.
But not any more. A study by Thomas has revealed that the reduced global
demand has pushed lead prices up while the…
