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Rabun County, Georgia: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Rabun County is 166.5 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. Federal databases place 159 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (84), Industrial wastewater discharge (41), Gas station (mapped facility) (11). 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: 34.8588, -83.4529.

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 Rabun County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	37.9	23.8	1.59xSignificant	26.9 to 52.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	15.8	11.3	1.4x	10 to 24.8	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	25.3	18.5	1.37x	16.5 to 37.6	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	18.8	13.9	1.35x	12.5 to 28.2	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	17	13	1.31x	9.7 to 28	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	24.1	18.7	1.29x	17.3 to 34	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	38.4	30.2	1.27x	29.1 to 50.5	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	21	17.9	1.17x	13 to 32.5	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	166.5	143.2	1.16xSignificant	145.1 to 190.9	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	60	51.8	1.16x	48.2 to 74.6	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	492.8	453.4	1.09xSignificant	454.1 to 534.4	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 Rabun County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	11,890.7	9,842.6	+21%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.3	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	89.8	59.8	+50%	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	115.7	96.9	+19%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	34.9	28.6	+22%	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.

Formaldehyde17.65 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.75 per million
Acetaldehyde1.56 per million
Benzene0.6 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit84
Industrial wastewater discharge41
Gas station (mapped facility)11
Air permit holder (minor source)10
Hydroelectric plant3
Major air pollution source2
Public airport2
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Small hazardous waste generator1
Biomass power plant1
TRI reporting facility1
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)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.

Multitrade Rabun Gap, Llc, Rabun Gap
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040493150 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Multitrade Rabun Gap, Llc, Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040493150 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Tugalo Const. Co- Dillard Asphalt Plant Ap - 74, Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110033183052 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Vulcan Construction Materials, Llc - Rabun Quarry, Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070026238 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Morgan Concrete Co. - Rabun Gap, Rabun Gap
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017714053 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Rabun County Water & Sewer Authority (Stekoa Creek Wrf), Clayton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071710649 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Tugalo Const. Co- Dillard Asphalt Plant Ap - 74, Rabun Gap
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110033183052 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Tricorn Usa, Inc., Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070229342 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Rabun County Sewage Treatment Plant, Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110058278448 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Rabun Apparel Inc, Rabun Gap
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000358513 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Morgan Concrete Co. - Rabun Gap, Rabun Gap
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead And Lead Compounds, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution).
TRI facility ID 3056WMRGNC527CR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Rabun Apparel Inc, Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000358513 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Lake Burton Hatchery, Clarkesville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006795824 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Georgia Power - Terrora Dam, Tallulah Falls
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071380873 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Rabun County Water & Sewer Authority (Stekoa Creek Wrf), Clayton
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit GA0020923: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.7
Multitrade Rabun Gap, Llc, Rabun Gap
Biomass power plant.
Record ID 50201 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 2.5
Dillard, City Of (Dillard Wpcp), Dillard
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006777345 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Athens Y Camp Chattooga (Athens Y Camp Chattooga Wpcp), Tallulah Falls
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020067988 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Lake Burton Hatchery, Clarkesville
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit GA0029840: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2
Morgan Concrete Co. - Rabun Gap, Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017714053 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Vulcan Construction Materials, Llc (Rabun Quarry), Rabun Gap
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007356128 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Christian Spiritual Alliance Inc. Dba Center For Spiritual Awareness (Center For, Lakemont
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010041356 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Rabun County Water And Sewer Authority (Lake Rabun Wtp), Lakemont
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011330693 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Athens Y Camp Chattooga (Athens Y Camp Chattooga Wpcp), Tallulah Falls
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012676531 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Georgia Power Company (Nacoochee Hydroelectric Plant), Lakemont
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110013762080 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5

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 Rabun 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 Rabun 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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