The report said institute officials decided to cancel Saturday dances because of his presence.

The institute officials said that they provided more than mere numbers-crunching.

Some institute officials estimate that between 1 and 3 percent of those deaths resulted from environmental pollutants.

"This was a key component," an institute official said at the time.

Even some institute officials acknowledge that so far it has had little impact on public policy.

That is easy to say, institute officials agree, but difficult and costly to do.

Although institute officials say money was never a deciding factor in the cleanup efforts, their records raise the financial issue.

After deep discussion, institute officials say, the experts approved the work.

The other 14 may stay until their contracts, which run for one and two years, expire, institute officials said.

But institute officials say they are optimistic about the future of the institute.