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Lassen County, California: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Lassen County is 131.9 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 259 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (80), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (57), Small hazardous waste generator (28). 5 correctional facilities operate in the county, at least one with health-based drinking water violations on record. 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: 40.4461, -120.5287.

How this county ranks in California

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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 Lassen County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.6	8.7	1.1x	5.8 to 15.2	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	15.1	14.5	1.04x	9.9 to 22.3	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	131.9	143.2	0.92x	115.6 to 150.1	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	9.6	11.3	0.85x	5.5 to 15.7	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	344.9	453.4	0.76x	318.2 to 373.5	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	22.1	30.2	0.73x	15.8 to 30.1	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	12.6	17.9	0.7x	7.9 to 19.2	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	36.4	51.8	0.7x	28.1 to 46.4	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	16.6	23.8	0.7x	11.1 to 24	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	9.1	13.9	0.65x	5.2 to 14.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	11.6	18.5	0.63x	7.2 to 17.8	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	9.7	18.7	0.52x	5.6 to 15.7	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 Lassen County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	11,257.6	9,842.6	+14%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.9	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	65.7	59.8	+10%	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	132.1	96.9	+36%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	38.7	28.6	+35%	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.

Formaldehyde18.06 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.55 per million
Acetaldehyde2.39 per million
Naphthalene2.02 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing80
NPDES wastewater discharge permit57
Small hazardous waste generator28
Gas station (mapped facility)18
Industrial wastewater discharge18
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)12
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)10
Correctional facility (prison or jail)5
Public airport4
Large hazardous waste generator4
Major air pollution source3
Commercial airport2
Brownfield property2
Biomass power plant2
Solar power plant2
Scrapyard (mapped facility)2
TRI reporting facility2
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)2
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Geothermal plant1
Hydroelectric plant1
Gas 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.

Federal Bureau Of Prisons Fci Herlong, Herlong
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 1,495 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 9611WFDRLB74192 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
U.S Army Sierra Army Depot, Herlong
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methyl isobutyl ketone, Toluene, Xylene (mixed isomers), Polychlorinated biphenyls and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 799 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 96113SRRRMSIERR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.7
Susanville Csd Wastewater Treatment Facility, Susanville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000713684 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Sierra Army Depot, Herlong
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041960722 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Sierra Army Depot, Herlong
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041960722 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Cdc Ca Correctional Ctr, Susanville
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002927478 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Cdc Ca Correctional Ctr, Susanville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002927478 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Federal Bureau Of Prisons Fci Herlong, Herlong
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043671336 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Sierra Army Depot, Herlong
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041960722 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
H.L. Power Company, Wendel
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000522649 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Mt Lassen Power, Westwood
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006826667 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Cdc Ca Correctional Ctr, Susanville
Correctional facility (prison or jail).
EPA FRS registry ID 110002927478 (U.S. EPA ECHO + SDWIS) Agency record
Severity 3.1
High Sierra Cogeneration Plant, Susanville
Gas power plant.
Record ID 57977 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3
Lassen Union High School District Office, Susanville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071968459 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Susanville, Ca - 477-280 Weatherlow St., Susanville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071973131 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Lassen Municipal Utility District, Susanville
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011652808 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Rite Aid #6105, Susanville
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110042178336 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Clean Harbors Environmental Services, Inc, Herlong
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046524052 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Susanville Sd Wwtp, Susanville
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit CA0102695: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 3
Hl Power, Wendel
Biomass power plant.
Record ID 10777 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 2.5
Big Valley Power Llc, Bieber
Biomass power plant.
Record ID 10288 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 2.5
Amedee Geothermal Power Plant, Susanville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010058123 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Bass Hill Landfill, Susanville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064638101 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Westwood Class Iii Landfill, Westwood
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110065560609 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Pit Row Dismantlers, Susanville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070090919 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3

Correctional facilities

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

Cdc Ca Correctional Ctr, Susanville
EPA FRS registry ID
110002927478
Water system
CA1810800
Health-based violations
6 all time, 0 in 5 years
All violations
7
Contaminants cited
Coliform (TCR)
Wastewater permit
Yes, 11 quarters in noncompliance
EPA detailed facility report
High Desert State Prison, Susanville
EPA FRS registry ID
110012878350
Water system
CA1805004
Health-based violations
10 all time, 0 in 5 years
All violations
10
Contaminants cited
Arsenic
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
Federal Bureau Of Prisons Fci Herlong, Herlong
EPA FRS registry ID
110043671336
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
California Correctional Center Warehouse, Susanville
EPA FRS registry ID
110065636459
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
Cdcr - California Correctional Center, Susanville
EPA FRS registry ID
110066418996
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Lassen County

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