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El Paso County, Colorado: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in El Paso County is 136.8 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Melanoma of the skin deaths at 1.3 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 3,111 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (1,028), Industrial wastewater discharge (853), Air permit holder (minor source) (534). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 20 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: 38.829, -104.5628.

How this county ranks in Colorado

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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 El Paso County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	2.5	2	1.25xSignificant	2.1 to 3.1	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	4.5	4.1	1.1x	3.9 to 5.3	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	4.8	4.4	1.09x	4.2 to 5.6	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	13.7	13	1.05x	12.6 to 15	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6.2	6.2	1x	5.4 to 7.1	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	4.8	4.8	1x	4.1 to 5.6	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	11.3	11.3	1x	10.3 to 12.5	2020-2024
Thyroid	Deaths	0.5	0.5	1x	0.3 to 0.8	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	18.6	18.7	0.99x	17.3 to 20.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.6	5.7	0.98x	4.8 to 6.4	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	136.8	143.2	0.96x	133 to 140.6	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	13.8	14.5	0.95x	12.7 to 15.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	13.2	13.9	0.95x	12 to 14.4	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	3.5	3.7	0.95x	3 to 4.2	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	3.2	3.4	0.94x	2.7 to 3.9	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	16.5	18.5	0.89x	15.2 to 17.9	2019-2023
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	14.4	16.4	0.88x	11.8 to 17.5	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	395.9	453.4	0.87x	389.5 to 402.4	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	5.6	6.6	0.85x	4.9 to 6.4	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	3.9	4.6	0.85x	3.3 to 4.6	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	14.8	17.9	0.83x	13.6 to 16.1	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	2.2	2.7	0.81x	1.8 to 2.8	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	23.7	30.2	0.78x	22.2 to 25.3	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	5	6.6	0.76x	4.3 to 5.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	36.6	51.8	0.71x	34.6 to 38.6	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	16.8	23.8	0.71x	15.5 to 18.1	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	6	8.7	0.69x	5.3 to 6.8	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 El Paso County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,565.7	9,842.6	-3%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.2	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	60	59.8	+0%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.7	6.2	-9%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	114.9	96.9	+19%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	44.7	28.6	+56%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 20 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde11.45 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.39 per million
Naphthalene1.53 per million
Benzene1.12 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 249 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 46, peak 97.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

3,111 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

NPDES wastewater discharge permit1,028
Industrial wastewater discharge853
Air permit holder (minor source)534
Gas station (mapped facility)238
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)148
Small hazardous waste generator68
Rail grade crossing61
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)26
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)23
TRI reporting facility22
Brownfield property21
Large hazardous waste generator12
Major air pollution source11
Heliport10
Public airport9
Large greenhouse gas emitter6
Hazardous waste transporter6
Solar power plant6
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)6
Scrapyard (mapped facility)5
Commercial airport4
Gas power plant4
EPA air quality monitor3
Hydroelectric plant3
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Battery storage plant1
Coal power plant1
Wind 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.

Colorado Springs Utilities Ray Nixon Power Plant, Fountain
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Barium And Barium Compounds, Ammonia, Vanadium compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 836,198 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80817RYNXN14020 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9
Microchip Technologies - 1150 E Cheyenne, Colorado Springs
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000467673 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.9
Us Army Fort Carson (Cantonment), Fort Carson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Copper, Lead And Lead Compounds, Nitroglycerin and 1 more. 2,494,306 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80913FRTCRCOMMA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Ray D Nixon Power Plant, Fountain
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $49,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000467646 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.4
Manstone Llc, Colorado Springs
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 5,660 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80907MNSTN115TA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.4
Us Army Fort Carson, Ft Carson
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000495367 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.4
Colorado Springs Utilities Martin Drake Power Plant, Colorado Springs
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Barium And Barium Compounds, Copper And Copper Compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds, Mercury And Mercury Compounds and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 3,469 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80903MRTND700SC (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Atmel Corp, Colorado Springs
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ozone, Ammonia, Ethylene glycol, Hydrogen fluoride and 2 more. 240,255 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80906HNYWL1150E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Electronics Metal Finishing Corp, Colorado Springs
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000467682 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Schlage Lock Co Llc, Security
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper, Nickel, Chromium, Lead And Lead Compounds and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,133 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80911SCHLG3899H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.8
Lsi Logic, Colorado Springs
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000467780 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Broadacre Landfill - Fountain Landfill, Fountain Area
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001389943 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Us Dod Usaf Academy, U S A F Academy
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 283 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80840SRFRC8034E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.4
Ray D Nixon, Fountain
Coal power plant.
Record ID 8219 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 6.3
Us Air Force Academy, Usafa
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043790181 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.2
Agilent Technologies, Colorado Springs
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110056905443 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.2
Innovaflex, Colorado Springs
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone, Certain glycol ethers. 10,749 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80916NCRMD1635A (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.1
Upper Monument Crk Reg Wwtf, Colorado Springs
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006781241 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Security Sd, Fountain
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039690000 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Cherokee Metro District Water Reclamation Facility, Colorado Springs
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041920561 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Microchip Technologies - 1150 E Cheyenne, Colorado Springs
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000467673 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Sinton Dairy Foods Comp Llc, Colorado Springs
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000467726 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Jd Phillips Water Reclamation Facility, Colorado Springs
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $35,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020177057 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Weatherford Artificial Lift Systems Llc, Colorado Springs
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper, Lead And Lead Compounds, Chromium and Chromium Compounds(except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region), Nickel. Reports carcinogens. 23 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 80915XLSNN3445N (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.6
Western Scrap Processing Co Inc, Colorado Springs
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $155,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001392537 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5

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 El Paso County

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