DE / county FIPS 10005 / county research

Sussex County, Delaware: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Sussex County is 155.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Melanoma of the skin deaths at 1.5 times the U.S. rate and Bladder deaths at 1.4 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 573 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (157), Gas station (mapped facility) (103), Air permit holder (minor source) (55). One correctional facility operates 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 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: 38.7063, -75.3932.

How this county ranks in Delaware

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 Sussex County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	3	2	1.5xSignificant	2.3 to 4	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	5.9	4.1	1.44xSignificant	4.9 to 7	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	6.4	4.8	1.33xSignificant	5.2 to 7.7	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	31.4	23.8	1.32xSignificant	28.8 to 34.3	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	16.6	13	1.28xSignificant	14.2 to 19.3	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7.7	6.2	1.24x	6.2 to 9.4	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	22.7	18.7	1.21xSignificant	20.7 to 24.8	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.1	4.4	1.16x	4 to 6.3	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	13	11.3	1.15xSignificant	11.6 to 14.7	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	58.6	51.8	1.13xSignificant	55.5 to 61.9	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	33.6	30.2	1.11xSignificant	31.3 to 36.1	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	7.3	6.6	1.11x	6 to 8.7	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	495.4	453.4	1.09xSignificant	484.9 to 506.1	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	155.4	143.2	1.09xSignificant	149.9 to 161	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	4	3.7	1.08x	3.2 to 5	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	15	13.9	1.08x	13.4 to 16.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.9	18.5	1.08x	17.8 to 22.2	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	6.1	5.7	1.07x	5.1 to 7.4	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	17.5	16.4	1.07x	12.1 to 24.7	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	15.2	14.5	1.05x	13.3 to 17.2	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	4.8	4.6	1.04x	3.9 to 5.8	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	2.6	2.7	0.96x	1.9 to 3.6	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	3.2	3.4	0.94x	2.5 to 4.1	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6	6.6	0.91x	5 to 7.2	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	15.9	17.9	0.89x	14 to 18	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	7.7	8.7	0.89x	6.5 to 9.1	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 Sussex County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,330.1	9,842.6	-5%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	77.1	75.3	+2%	years
Child mortality	48	59.8	-20%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5	6.2	-20%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	99	96.9	+2%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	47.4	28.6	+66%	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.

Formaldehyde16.4 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.99 per million
Acetaldehyde1.41 per million
Benzene0.99 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 300 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 39, peak 105.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing157
Gas station (mapped facility)103
Air permit holder (minor source)55
NPDES wastewater discharge permit55
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)44
Small hazardous waste generator23
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)19
Industrial wastewater discharge18
Large hazardous waste generator16
TRI reporting facility14
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)14
Brownfield property10
Public airport8
Major air pollution source4
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)4
Large greenhouse gas emitter4
Solar power plant4
Hazardous waste transporter3
Scrapyard (mapped facility)3
Superfund (NPL) site3
EPA air quality monitor2
Heliport2
Landfill (mapped facility)2
Commercial airport1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Biomass power plant1
Coal power plant1
Wind power plant1
Proposed Superfund site1

Highest-severity records

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

NCR Corp. (Millsboro Plant), Millsboro
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 38.2. NPL Site.
EPA site ID DED043958388 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Georgetown North Groundwater, Georgetown
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. NPL Site.
EPA site ID DEN000304167 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Blades Groundwater, Blades
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. NPL Site.
EPA site ID DEN000304203 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Perdue Farms, Inc., Georgetown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064121114 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.9
Allen Family Foods, Inc. Harbeson Plant, Harbeson
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110056556597 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.2
Millsboro TCE, Millsboro
Proposed Superfund site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. Proposed NPL Site.
EPA site ID DEN000306645 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 8
Justin Tanks Llc, Georgetown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 31,600 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19947MFGJSEIGHT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Perdue Foods Llc - Georgetown Processing Plant, Georgetown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Ammonia, Hydrogen sulfide, Peracetic acid. 2,445,630 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19947PRDNC200SA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Mountaire Farms Of Delaware Inc, Millsboro
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Ammonia, Hydrogen sulfide, Zinc compounds and 3 more. 1,888,968 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19966TWNSNRT24P (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.8
Allen Harim Foods Llc - Harbeson, Harbeson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Ammonia, Peracetic acid. 107,738 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19951LLNFMPOBOX (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
Indian River Generating Station, Dagsboro
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Barium compounds (except for barium sulfate (CAS No. 7727-43-7)), Sulfuric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size) and 3 more. 42,794 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19966NDNRVRTE33 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.6
Indian River Generating Station, Dagsboro
Coal power plant.
Record ID 594 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 6.4
Orient Corp Of America, Seaford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Aniline, Nitrobenzene, Diphenylamine. Reports carcinogens. 304 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19973RNTCH111PA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.4
Mountaire Farms Inc. - Selbyville Plant, Selbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Peracetic acid. 15,035 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19975MNTRFCORNE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
Indian River Generating Station, Millsboro
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000603936 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Mountaire Farms Of Delaware, Millsboro
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110035846172 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
The Pictsweet Co - Bridgeville De Plant, Bridgeville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia. 5,066 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19933DLGRCPOBOX (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.8
Brainerd Llc, Seaford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Peracetic acid. 2,015 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19973SCJHN100IN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.5
The Pictsweet Company, Bridgeville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110056610369 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Allen Family Foods, Inc. Harbeson Plant, Harbeson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110056556597 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Johnson Polymer Inc, Seaford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000339063 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Allen Harim Foods Llc - Millsboro, Millsboro
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Peracetic acid. 1,079 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 19966VLSCFROUTE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.3
Allen Harim - Pinnacle Processing Plant-Treatment Plant, Millsboro
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000585153 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Perdue Farms, Inc., Georgetown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064121114 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Mountaire Farms Inc. - Selbyville Processing, Selbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000720505 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5

Correctional facilities

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

Sussex Correctional Center, Georgetown
EPA FRS registry ID
110054589744
Water system
DE0000278
Health-based violations
2 all time, 0 in 5 years
All violations
2
Contaminants cited
Coliform (TCR)
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Sussex County

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