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Buena Vista County, Iowa: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Buena Vista County is 135.9 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 164 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (63), Air permit holder (minor source) (26), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (20). 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: 42.7416, -95.1507.

How this county ranks in Iowa

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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 Buena Vista County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	22.4	18.5	1.21x	14.5 to 33.3	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	15	14.5	1.03x	8.6 to 24.2	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	23.9	23.8	1x	15.6 to 35	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	135.9	143.2	0.95x	115.9 to 158.5	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	416.9	453.4	0.92x	380.2 to 456.3	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	16.4	18.7	0.88x	10 to 25.6	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	26.2	30.2	0.87x	17.9 to 37.3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	38.9	51.8	0.75x	28.5 to 52.1	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 Buena Vista County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	6,218	9,842.6	-37%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	79.4	75.3	+5%	years
Child mortality	58.4	59.8	-2%	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	43.7	96.9	-55%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	n/a	28.6	n/a	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.

Formaldehyde13.56 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.92 per million
Acetaldehyde1.13 per million
Benzene0.72 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing63
Air permit holder (minor source)26
NPDES wastewater discharge permit20
Industrial wastewater discharge19
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)9
Gas station (mapped facility)8
TRI reporting facility8
Small hazardous waste generator4
Major air pollution source2
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
Commercial airport1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Oil-fired 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.

Valero Renewable Fuels Albert City*, Albert City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane, Acrolein, Acetaldehyde, Methanol and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 94,057 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50510VRSNL23565 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.3
Tyson Fresh Meats Inc - Storm Lake, Storm Lake
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000605792 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.2
Tyson Fresh Meats Inc, Storm Lake
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Peracetic acid. 210,848 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50588BPNCXFLIND (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Platinum Crush Llc, Alta
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane. 195,370 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5100WPLTNM59567 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Rembrandt Enterprises Inc, Rembrandt
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020140079 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.1
Platinum Crush, Alta
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071312899 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.9
Rembrandt Enterprises Inc., Rembrandt
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitric acid, Peracetic acid, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution). 117,039 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5057WRMBRN14194 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
Hillshire Brands Plant-Wholly Owned Sub Of Tyson Foods Inc, Storm Lake
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Peracetic acid, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution). 16,965 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50588BLMRF315VI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
Valero Renewable Fuels Co, Llc - Albert City, Albert City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022575480 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
The Hillshire Brands Company, Storm Lake
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000523032 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Storm Lake Wwtp, Storm Lake
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009248402 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Furst Mcness Company, Storm Lake
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000413605 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.9
Furst Mcness Co, Storm Lake
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Copper compounds, Manganese compounds. 134 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50588FRSTM2000E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.6
Sioux Rapids City Of Stp, Sioux Rapids
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010033748 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Meridian Manufacturing Inc., Storm Lake
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Cobalt, Chromium, Manganese and 1 more. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 50588FRSNF2897E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Alta Municipal Utilities, Alta
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 1121 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Friesen Of Iowa, Storm Lake
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000413598 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Tyson Fresh Meats Inc - Storm Lake, Storm Lake
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000605792 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Platinum Crush, Alta
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071312899 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Hillshire Brands Company - A Wholly Owned Subsidiary Of Tyson Foods Inc, Storm Lake
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071425144 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Rembrandt Enterprises Inc, Rembrandt
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020140079 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Valero Renewable Fuels Co, Llc - Albert City, Albert City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022575480 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Platinum Crush, Alta
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071312899 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Storm Lake Wwtp, Storm Lake
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110009248402 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Valero Renewable Fuels Co, Llc - Albert City, Albert City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022575480 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3

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 Buena Vista County

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