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Muscogee County, Georgia: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Muscogee County is 169.2 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 1.4 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.2 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 1,127 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (614), Industrial wastewater discharge (156), Rail grade crossing (99). 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: 32.4916, -84.8639.

How this county ranks in Georgia

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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 Muscogee County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	4.7	3.4	1.38xSignificant	3.5 to 6.2	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	8.7	6.6	1.32xSignificant	7.1 to 10.6	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	3.5	2.7	1.3x	2.5 to 4.8	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	7.8	6.6	1.18x	6.3 to 9.6	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	169.2	143.2	1.18xSignificant	161.6 to 177.1	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	35.2	30.2	1.17xSignificant	31.9 to 38.8	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	60.2	51.8	1.16xSignificant	55.8 to 64.9	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.9	8.7	1.14x	8.1 to 11.9	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	4.5	4.1	1.1x	3.4 to 6	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	12.2	11.3	1.08x	10.2 to 14.4	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	484.7	453.4	1.07xSignificant	471.7 to 498	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	19	17.9	1.06x	16.5 to 21.8	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	15.3	14.5	1.06x	13 to 17.8	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	3.8	3.7	1.03x	2.7 to 5.2	2020-2024
Leukemia	Deaths	5.7	5.7	1x	4.4 to 7.4	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	16.3	16.4	0.99x	11.4 to 22.7	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	1.9	2	0.95x	1.2 to 2.9	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	13.1	13.9	0.94x	11 to 15.4	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	4.4	4.8	0.92x	3.2 to 5.8	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	4.1	4.6	0.89x	3 to 5.5	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	16.2	18.7	0.87x	13.9 to 18.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	15.3	18.5	0.83x	13 to 17.8	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	4.7	6.2	0.76x	3.5 to 6.2	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	3	4.4	0.68x	2.1 to 4.2	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	8.8	13	0.68x	7.1 to 10.9	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	10.1	23.8	0.42x	8.3 to 12.2	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 Muscogee County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	13,163.7	9,842.6	+34%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	72	75.3	-4%	years
Child mortality	91.3	59.8	+53%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	10	6.2	+61%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	103	96.9	+6%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	19.2	28.6	-33%	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.

Formaldehyde26.46 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.9 per million
Acetaldehyde2.55 per million
Benzene1.02 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 199 good, 5 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 48, peak 166.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

1,127 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

NPDES wastewater discharge permit614
Industrial wastewater discharge156
Rail grade crossing99
Air permit holder (minor source)88
Gas station (mapped facility)61
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)26
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)17
Small hazardous waste generator15
Brownfield property10
Large hazardous waste generator9
TRI reporting facility9
Major air pollution source3
EPA air quality monitor3
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)3
Landfill (mapped facility)3
Scrapyard (mapped facility)3
Hydroelectric plant2
Commercial airport1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Heliport1
Biomass power plant1
Solar power plant1
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)1

Highest-severity records

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

Kemira Chemicals Inc - Columbus Plant, Columbus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000525879 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.8
United Techs Corp Pratt & Whitney Div, Columbus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000741029 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.6
Aludyne-Columbus Llc, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone, Copper, Manganese compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 155,130 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 31995CLMBS1600N (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.5
Buckeye Se Terminals Lp - Columbus Ga, Columbus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001425182 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.3
Aludyne Columbus, Llc, Columbus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000361527 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.3
Sterling Specialty Chemicals Usa Llc, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Epichlorohydrin, Dimethylamine, Acrylic acid and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 32,660 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 31907CLLWY6603C (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Pratt & Whitney Div, Midland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrogen fluoride, Nitric acid, Nickel, Chromium and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 13,706 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 31908PRTTW8801M (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.7
Saratoga Rp East Llc - Columbus Terminal, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Toluene, Benzene, n-Hexane, Xylene (mixed isomers) and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 3,753 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3190WKNDRM5131M (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Goldens' Foundry & Machine Co, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Manganese, Copper, Lead and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 2,979 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 31901GLDNS60012 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
, Columbus
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 132150012 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 7
Aludyne Columbus, Llc, Columbus
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000361527 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
United Techs Corp Pratt & Whitney Div, Columbus
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000741029 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Aludyne Columbus, Llc, Columbus
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000361527 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
United Techs Corp Pratt & Whitney Div, Columbus
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000741029 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
United Techs Corp Pratt & Whitney Div, Columbus
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000741029 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Eastman Kodak Company, Columbus
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000859786 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Panasonic Energy Corp Of America Lithium Div, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds. 4,271 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 31907MTSSH0NEPA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.8
Columbus-Airport, Columbus
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 132150008 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 5.7
Airgas Specialty Products-Columbus Ga, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia. 2,630 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 3190WRGSSP31BRE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.6
Panasonic Energy Corp Of America Lithium Div, Columbus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000361402 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Stepan Company, Columbus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000361448 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Columbus, Columbus
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID CSG (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 5
Argos Columbus Concrete Plant, Columbus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 1 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 31907LFRGC5526S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.8
Kysor Warren Case Plant, Columbus
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000361475 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Tom'S Foods Inc. - Columbus Ga Bakery, Columbus
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000519911 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5

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 Muscogee County

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