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Tuscaloosa County, Alabama: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Tuscaloosa County is 132.5 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 2,556 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (1,369), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (587), Gas station (mapped facility) (154). One correctional facility operates in the county. 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: 33.3138, -87.5001.

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 Tuscaloosa County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.5	4.8	1.15x	4.2 to 7	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	16.4	16.4	1x	11.3 to 23	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	2	2	1x	1.3 to 3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	51.4	51.8	0.99x	47.5 to 55.7	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	29.9	30.2	0.99x	26.9 to 33.2	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	16.9	17.9	0.94x	14.7 to 19.5	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	3.8	4.1	0.93x	2.7 to 5.1	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	132.5	143.2	0.93x	126 to 139.3	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	4.1	4.6	0.89x	3.1 to 5.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	15.9	18.5	0.86x	13.7 to 18.5	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	378.6	453.4	0.84x	367.5 to 390.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	4.7	5.7	0.82x	3.5 to 6.1	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	3	3.7	0.81x	2.1 to 4.1	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	7	8.7	0.8x	5.6 to 8.6	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	2.1	2.7	0.78x	1.3 to 3.1	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	11.2	14.5	0.77x	9.3 to 13.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	10.2	13.9	0.73x	8.4 to 12.1	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	4.5	6.2	0.73x	3.4 to 5.9	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	2.4	3.4	0.71x	1.6 to 3.4	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	3.1	4.4	0.7x	2.2 to 4.3	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	4.6	6.6	0.7x	3.5 to 6	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	13	18.7	0.7x	10.9 to 15.3	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	7.8	11.3	0.69x	6.3 to 9.6	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	4.4	6.6	0.67x	3.2 to 5.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	14.8	23.8	0.62x	12.6 to 17.2	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	4.9	13	0.38x	3.7 to 6.5	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 Tuscaloosa County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,422.5	9,842.6	+6%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.5	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	77.9	59.8	+30%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	9.9	6.2	+60%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	72.4	96.9	-25%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	21.5	28.6	-25%	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.

Formaldehyde27.73 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.92 per million
Acetaldehyde2.66 per million
Benzene1.19 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 360 days: 265 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 41, peak 93.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

2,556 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

Industrial wastewater discharge1,369
NPDES wastewater discharge permit587
Gas station (mapped facility)154
Rail grade crossing135
Air permit holder (minor source)107
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)65
Small hazardous waste generator28
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)25
TRI reporting facility23
Brownfield property14
Major air pollution source12
Large hazardous waste generator7
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)5
Large greenhouse gas emitter5
Heliport4
Landfill (mapped facility)4
Scrapyard (mapped facility)3
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)3
Hydroelectric plant2
EPA air quality monitor1
Commercial airport1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Hazardous waste transporter1

Highest-severity records

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

Hunt Refining Co A Corp, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), n-Hexane, Sodium nitrite, Xylene (mixed isomers) and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,015,503 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35401HNTRF1855F (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.1
Mercedes-Benz U.S. International Inc., Vance
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Certain glycol ethers, n-Butyl alcohol, 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene, N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 820,230 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35490MRCDS1MERC (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9
Phifer Inc, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Tetrachloroethylene, Trichloroethylene. Reports carcinogens. 130,781 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35403PHFRW4400K (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.4
Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Inc, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Manganese compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Lead compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 81,548 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35404TSCLS1500H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.3
Boysen Usa Alabama Llc, Brookwood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Chromium(III) perfluorooctanoate. Reports PFAS. 33,000 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3544WBYSNS1752B (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Smp Automotive Systems Alabama, Cottondale
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Ethylbenzene, n-Butyl alcohol. Reports carcinogens. 20,218 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3545WSMPTM1799E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.8
Michelin N.A. Inc, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Chlorine, Phenol, Cobalt compounds and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 7,208 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35403NRYLG2006E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.5
Motherson Electroplating Us Llc, Northport
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel compounds, Copper compounds, Nitric acid, Chromium compounds (except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region) and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 3,770 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3547WBLTSN165BN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Merichem Technologies Llc Catalyst Plant, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Cresol (mixed isomers), Cobalt compounds, Cobalt And Cobalt Compounds, Nonylphenol Ethoxylates. Reports carcinogens. 3,619 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35404MRCHMONEWA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Southern Heat Exchanger Corp, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Chromium, Nickel, Copper. Reports carcinogens. 2,380 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35405STHRN6100O (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Tms International Llc, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel compounds, Nickel And Nickel Compounds, Chromium and Chromium Compounds(except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region), Chromium compounds (except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region) and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,538 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3540WTBCTY21JAC (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
Southern Heat Exchanger Corp, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Nickel, Chromium, Copper. Reports carcinogens. 1,402 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3540WSTHRN55LDM (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
Cox Wood Of Alabama, Woodstock
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Pentachlorophenol, Polycyclic aromatic compounds, Dioxin and dioxin-like compounds, Hexachlorobenzene and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 895 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3518WCXWDF181BU (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.8
Hunt Refining Company, A Corporation, Tuscaloosa
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000367102 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Mercedes-Benz Us International Inc, Vance
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000367246 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.4
Ashton Lewis - Sullivan Inc., Northport
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 230 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3547WWGSLL16213 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.3
Smp Automotive Systems Ala, Cottondale
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070126158 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Nucor Steel, Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110042026170 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Hero Bx Alabama, Moundville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol. 13,850 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3547WHRBXL12982 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
Boysen Usa Alabama Llc, Brookwood
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110066966439 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Elk Co Of Texas Llc, Tuscaloosa
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper compounds, Polycyclic aromatic compounds, Copper And Copper Compounds, Benzo[g,h,i]perylene. Reports carcinogens. 111 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 35401LKCRP4600S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.1
Motherson Electroplating Us Llc, Northport
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067378714 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Phifer Incorporated, Tuscaloosa
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000367157 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Tuscaloosa Wwtp, Tuscaloosa
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $351,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000759180 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Hero Bx Alabama, Moundville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039154376 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.6

Correctional facilities

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

Tuscaloosa County Jail - Demolition And Early Site Package, Tuscaloosa
EPA FRS registry ID
110071661463
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Tuscaloosa 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 Tuscaloosa 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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