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Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, Alaska: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area is 225.8 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. Federal databases place 175 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (60), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (44), Air permit holder (minor source) (16). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 10 in a million, driven mainly by formaldehyde.

Rates are age-adjusted per 100,000 people. A cancer signal is marked significant when the lower bound of its 95 percent confidence interval is above the U.S. rate. Facility counts use active federal records located inside the county boundary. Approximate county center: 55.5112, -132.8551.

How this county ranks in Alaska

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Cancer deaths and new cases versus the United States

Source: NCI and CDC State Cancer Profiles, both sexes, all ages. Sorted by the ratio of the county rate to the U.S. rate.

Cancer rates for Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
All cancer	Deaths	225.8	143.2	1.58xSignificant	177.4 to 284.4	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	66.8	51.8	1.29x	40.1 to 105	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	426.1	453.4	0.94x	357.7 to 504.7	2019-2023

Mortality measures versus the U.S. county median

Source: County Health Rankings, built from CDC National Vital Statistics System death records. The comparison value is the median of all U.S. counties.

Mortality measures for Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	14,378.5	9,842.6	+46%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	71.9	75.3	-4%	years
Child mortality	n/a	59.8	n/a	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	n/a	6.2	n/a	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	149.2	96.9	+54%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	n/a	28.6	n/a	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 10 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde5.17 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride3.04 per million
Acetaldehyde0.82 per million
Benzene0.78 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

No EPA air quality monitor reports daily AQI for this county.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

175 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

Industrial wastewater discharge60
NPDES wastewater discharge permit44
Air permit holder (minor source)16
Brownfield property15
Airfield14
Oil-fired power plant8
Hydroelectric plant5
Gas station (mapped facility)4
Hazardous waste transporter4
Commercial airport3
Heliport1
Superfund (NPL) site1

Highest-severity records

The 25 records with the highest Envyrofax severity in the county, with the agency identifier to cite in a records request.

Salt Chuck Mine, Thorne Bay
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. NPL Site.
EPA site ID AK0001897602 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
El Capitan Lodge, Ketchikan
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $59,416.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055167108 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Metlakatla Water Treatment, Metlakatla
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011381897 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Sportsmans Cove Lodge, Craig
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110028073215 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Viking Lumber Company, Craig
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040078117 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
State Of Alaska Edna Bay Ltf, Edna Bay
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110069334465 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Edna Bay Log Transfer Facility, Klawock
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070505031 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Inter-Island Ferry Authority Clark Bay Hollis Terminal, Hollis
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070518829 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Aki Port Armstrong Aquaculture Facility, Port Alexander
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070602691 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Pow Pits_2, Craig
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070817302 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Usda Usfs R10 Kake Stp And Landfill, Kake
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022285150 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Waterfall Resort, Hydaburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040431654 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Alaska Island Adventures Lodge, Hydaburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070004105 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Craig (Ak), Craig
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 421 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Centennial, Metlakatla
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 7112 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Kake, Kake
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 7464 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Klawock Power Generation Station, Klawock
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 61684 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
False Island, Thorne Bay
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 56146 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Hydaburg, Prince Of Wales
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 423 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Viking, Craig
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 56147 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Thorne Bay Plant, Craig
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 7414 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Tamgas Creek Tribal Salmon Hatchery, Metlakatla
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011382182 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Alaskan Escape Fish Camp, Thorne Bay
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110054899516 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Usda Usfs R10 Kake Stp And Landfill, Kake
Hazardous waste transporter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022285150 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Cape Muzon Barge Wwtf, Hydaburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070230608 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8

Correctional facilities

Prisons, jails and corrections operations with an EPA facility record, and the drinking water and wastewater compliance attached to them.

No correctional facility with an EPA record is located in this county.

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area

Alaska state cancer registry
Cancer incidence counts by census tract or ZIP code, by cancer type and year (de-identified). Any cancer cluster inquiries or investigations in Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, and their findings.
Alaska vital statistics office
Death certificate counts by cause of death and residence tract or ZIP code, and the years behind the mortality measures above.
Alaska health department, environmental epidemiology
Health consultations or assessments by ATSDR or the state health department covering the county, and any exposure investigations.
Alaska environmental agency and the U.S. EPA regional office
Compliance history, inspection reports, notices of violation, penalties and enforcement actions for each facility above, cited by EPA FRS registry ID.
Alaska drinking water program
Violation notices, sampling results and sanitary surveys for the public water systems serving the county, including any system serving a correctional facility.
Department of corrections or county sheriff
Water testing, grievances and environmental health inspections for the correctional facilities listed above.

Each Envyrofax address report includes a printable records request worksheet with the custodian and the exact request wording per finding.

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