AL / county FIPS 01113 / county research

Russell County, Alabama: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Russell County is 205.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Kidney & renal pelvis deaths at 2 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.6 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 360 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (128), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (115), Rail grade crossing (43). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 40 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: 32.2918, -85.1814.

How this county ranks in Alabama

View on the heat map Scan an address in this county

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 Russell County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	6.8	3.4	2xSignificant	4.2 to 10.4	2020-2024
Stomach	Deaths	4.6	2.7	1.7x	2.6 to 7.7	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	49.8	30.2	1.65xSignificant	42.5 to 58	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	205.7	143.2	1.44xSignificant	190.3 to 221.9	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	5.2	3.7	1.41x	3.1 to 8.4	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	6.3	4.6	1.37x	3.9 to 9.7	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.6	4.4	1.27x	3.2 to 9	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	5.1	4.1	1.24x	2.9 to 8.3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	58.1	51.8	1.12x	50.4 to 66.8	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6.7	6.2	1.08x	3.9 to 10.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	6.1	5.7	1.07x	3.6 to 9.6	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.8	6.6	1.03x	4.4 to 10.3	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	6.4	6.6	0.97x	4 to 9.8	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	7.7	8.7	0.89x	5.1 to 11.3	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	12.7	14.5	0.88x	9 to 17.3	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	377.7	453.4	0.83x	357 to 399.3	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	9.2	11.3	0.81x	6.2 to 13.1	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	14.1	17.9	0.79x	10.3 to 18.9	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	13.9	18.5	0.75x	10.2 to 18.7	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	8.5	13.9	0.61x	5.7 to 12.4	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	6.8	13	0.52x	4.2 to 10.4	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	8.8	18.7	0.47x	5.9 to 12.7	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	6.2	23.8	0.26x	3.8 to 9.7	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 Russell County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	14,160.4	9,842.6	+44%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	71	75.3	-6%	years
Child mortality	83.3	59.8	+39%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	8.3	6.2	+34%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	126.7	96.9	+31%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	29.1	28.6	+2%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 40 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde26.52 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.9 per million
Acetaldehyde2.65 per million
Benzene1 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 281 days: 223 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 40, peak 88.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Industrial wastewater discharge128
NPDES wastewater discharge permit115
Rail grade crossing43
Gas station (mapped facility)19
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)9
Major air pollution source7
Small hazardous waste generator7
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)7
Air permit holder (minor source)6
TRI reporting facility4
Public airport3
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
Hazardous waste transporter2
Landfill (mapped facility)2
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)2
EPA air quality monitor1
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Heliport1
Biomass power plant1

Highest-severity records

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

Westrock Coated Board Llc, Cottonton
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ammonia, Manganese compounds, Acetaldehyde and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 11,160,787 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 36868MDCTDALABA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.9
General Shale Brick Inc. - Plant 65, Phenix City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrogen fluoride, Lead, Manganese compounds, Zinc compounds. Reports carcinogens. 585,025 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 36869BRLBR100BR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.9
Continental Carbon Co Phenix City, Phenix City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrogen sulfide, Carbon disulfide, Hydrogen cyanide, Carbonyl sulfide and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 116,959 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 36867WTCCRSTATE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.4
Johns Manville, Phenix City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Formaldehyde. Reports carcinogens. 50,407 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 36867PRTKN908SE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.1
Westrock Coated Board, Llc. - Mahrt Mill, Phenix City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010380097 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.9
Meridian Brick Llc, Phenix City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009163216 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Owens Corning Ht Incorporated, Phenix City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000369770 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Phenix City Wastewater Treatment Plant, Phenix City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043041222 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Phenix Lumber Co, Phenix
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 80 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3687WPHNXL4CUTR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6
PHENIX CITY - SOUTH GIRARD SCHOOL, Phenix City
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 011130003 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 5.9
Argos Phenix City Concrete Plant, Phenix City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 1 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 36867LFRGP35BRI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.7
Phenix Lumber Co, Phenix
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110060261773 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Russell County Facility, Fort Mitchell
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064505272 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Faulk & Son, Inc., Phenix City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015870075 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Quikrete Ready Mix - Phenix City Plant, Phenix City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022447912 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Owens Corning Ht Incorporated, Phenix City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000369770 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Phenix Lumber Co, Phenix
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110060261773 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Continental Carbon Phenix City Plant, Phenix City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000369798 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Boral Bricks, Phenix City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000369814 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Southern Natural Gas Company, Holy Trinity
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002002822 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Meridian Brick Llc, Phenix City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002458359 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Meridian Brick Llc, Phenix City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009163216 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Westrock Coated Board, Llc. - Mahrt Mill, Phenix City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010380097 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Bob Dudley Lumber Llc, Hatchechubbee
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067432790 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Owens Corning Ht Incorporated, Phenix City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000369770 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3

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 Russell 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 Russell 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.

Scan an address in Russell County View on the heat map All Alabama counties