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Pickens County, Alabama: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Pickens County is 173 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. Federal databases place 305 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (123), Rail grade crossing (66), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (62). 2 correctional facilities operate in the county. EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 30 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: 33.268, -88.0725.

How this county ranks in Alabama

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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 Pickens County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Pancreas	New cases	20.5	13.9	1.47x	13.6 to 30.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	14.5	11.3	1.28x	9 to 22.8	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	22.3	17.9	1.25x	14.5 to 33	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	17.8	14.5	1.23x	10.9 to 27.7	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	173	143.2	1.21xSignificant	151 to 197.7	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	59	51.8	1.14x	47.1 to 73.4	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	33.5	30.2	1.11x	24.7 to 44.9	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	469.6	453.4	1.04x	432.3 to 509.6	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	15.8	18.5	0.85x	9.5 to 25.1	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	12.5	18.7	0.67x	7.2 to 20.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	11.1	23.8	0.47x	6.3 to 18.7	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 Pickens County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	13,196.6	9,842.6	+34%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	71.5	75.3	-5%	years
Child mortality	102.7	59.8	+72%	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	104	96.9	+7%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	19.2	28.6	-33%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 30 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde25.1 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.92 per million
Acetaldehyde2.54 per million
Pahpom0.79 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Industrial wastewater discharge123
Rail grade crossing66
NPDES wastewater discharge permit62
Air permit holder (minor source)16
Gas station (mapped facility)11
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)5
Brownfield property5
TRI reporting facility5
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)5
Major air pollution source2
Correctional facility (prison or jail)2
Public airport1
Commercial airport1
Heliport1

Highest-severity records

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

Alabama Pellets Llc, Aliceville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Formaldehyde, Methanol, Acetaldehyde, Lead And Lead Compounds and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 60,512 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3542WWSTRV6777H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Fci Aliceville Federal Bureau Of Prisons, Aliceville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 3,181 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3544WFCLCV117HI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Drax Biomass Inc, Aliceville
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $11,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045447432 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.9
Lewis Brothers Lumber Co, Aliceville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 253 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35442LWSBR10321 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.3
Lewis Brothers Lumber Co, Aliceville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002438586 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Fci Aliceville Federal Bureau Of Prisons, Aliceville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044797654 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Oldcastle Lawn & Garden, Aliceville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041927145 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Drax Biomass Inc, Aliceville
Major air pollution source. Penalties $11,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045447432 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Lavender, Inc., Aliceville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010105974 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Mcbride Oil Company, Inc., Aliceville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070875217 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Southern Natural Gas, Reform
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007913856 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Peco Farms Feed Mill, Gordo
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010103761 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Drax Biomass Inc, Aliceville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $11,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045447432 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Reform Wwtp, Reform
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055974156 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Southern Natural Gas, Reform
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007913856 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Bus Shop, Carrollton
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071970239 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Aliceville Cotton Mill, Aliceville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071971692 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former National Guard Armory, Aliceville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071972715 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Vacant Broad Street Building, Aliceville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072135894 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Vacant Lot, Downtown, Aliceville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072154595 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Lewis Brothers Lumber Co, Aliceville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002438586 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Oldcastle Lawn & Garden, Aliceville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds.
TRI facility ID 35442LDCST774HW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Peco Foods Inc - Gordo Feed Mill, Gordo
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper compounds, Manganese compounds, Zinc compounds.
TRI facility ID 35466PCFDS2472N (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Gordo Wwtp, Gordo
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $23,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055976591 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Peco Farms - Gordo Hatchery, Gordo
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit AL0061611: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.5

Correctional facilities

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

Fci Aliceville Federal Bureau Of Prisons, Aliceville
EPA FRS registry ID
110044797654
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report
Federal Bureau Of Prisons Fci Aliceville, Aliceville
EPA FRS registry ID
110070125981
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Pickens County

Alabama 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 Pickens County, and their findings.
Alabama vital statistics office
Death certificate counts by cause of death and residence tract or ZIP code, and the years behind the mortality measures above.
Alabama health department, environmental epidemiology
Health consultations or assessments by ATSDR or the state health department covering the county, and any exposure investigations.
Alabama 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.
Alabama 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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