IA / county FIPS 19033 / county research

Cerro Gordo County, Iowa: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Cerro Gordo County is 137.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Leukemia deaths at 1.6 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 422 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (205), Air permit holder (minor source) (55), Industrial wastewater discharge (25). 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: 43.0754, -93.2607.

How this county ranks in Iowa

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 Cerro Gordo 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	50.3	23.8	2.11xSignificant	42.1 to 59.7	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	7.8	4.6	1.7xSignificant	5 to 11.9	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	9.2	5.7	1.61xSignificant	6 to 13.6	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	7.4	4.8	1.54x	4.8 to 11.2	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	19	13	1.46xSignificant	13.4 to 26.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	20	14.5	1.38xSignificant	15 to 26.4	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	24.1	18.5	1.3xSignificant	19 to 30.5	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	4.4	3.4	1.29x	2.5 to 7.5	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.1	4.4	1.16x	2.7 to 8.9	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	59.5	51.8	1.15x	51.5 to 68.6	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	495.6	453.4	1.09xSignificant	470.1 to 522.3	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.4	8.7	1.08x	6.2 to 13.9	2019-2023
Stomach	New cases	6.7	6.6	1.02x	4.2 to 10.4	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	18.7	18.7	1x	14.4 to 24.1	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	137.7	143.2	0.96x	125.3 to 151.1	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	27.9	30.2	0.92x	22.6 to 34.2	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	16.3	17.9	0.91x	11.8 to 22	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	5.7	6.6	0.86x	3.5 to 9.2	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	7.6	13.9	0.55x	5.1 to 11.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	5.1	11.3	0.45x	3.1 to 8.3	2020-2024

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 Cerro Gordo County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,467.7	9,842.6	-4%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.5	75.3	+2%	years
Child mortality	79.2	59.8	+32%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	7.3	6.2	+18%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	105.5	96.9	+9%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	18.9	28.6	-34%	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.

Formaldehyde14.06 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.94 per million
Acetaldehyde1.23 per million
Benzene0.91 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing205
Air permit holder (minor source)55
Industrial wastewater discharge25
Gas station (mapped facility)20
Brownfield property19
Small hazardous waste generator16
NPDES wastewater discharge permit15
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)14
TRI reporting facility11
Major air pollution source10
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)6
Large greenhouse gas emitter4
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)4
Public airport3
Large hazardous waste generator3
Wind power plant3
Scrapyard (mapped facility)2
Commercial airport1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Gas power plant1
Oil-fired power plant1
Superfund (NPL) 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.

Mason City Coal Gasification Plant, Mason City
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 69.3. NPL Site.
EPA site ID IAD980969190 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Curries Div Of Aadg Inc., Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene, Certain glycol ethers, n-Butyl alcohol, Toluene and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 166,175 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401CRRSC16001 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.5
Golden Grain Energy Llc, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Acetaldehyde, n-Hexane, Methanol, Xylene (mixed isomers) and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 99,076 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401GLDNG18334 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.3
Heidelberg Materials Us Cement Llc, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Aluminum (fume or dust), Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Lead And Lead Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 57,423 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401LHGHP70025 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Curries Division Of Aadg, Inc - 12th St Nw, Mason City
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $12,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000413240 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Ag Processing Inc, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane. 402,537 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401GPRCS16051 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.3
Golden Grain Energy, Llc, Mason City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020160403 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.3
Heidelberg Materials Us Cement Llc (Remediation Site), Mason City
Major air pollution source. Penalties $197,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072214417 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.3
Woodharbor Custom Cabinetry, Mason City
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $13,750.
EPA FRS registry ID 110036353460 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.2
Woodharbor Doors & Cabinetry, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Toluene. 93,878 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401WDHRB32779 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.8
Heidelberg Materials Us Cement Llc (Remediation Site), Mason City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $197,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072214417 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.8
Kraft Heinz Foods Co, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Chlorodifluoromethane (HCFC-22), Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Nitric acid. 66,975 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401GNRLF10221 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.7
Reg Mason City Llc, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol. 33,641 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401FRDMF41721 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.5
Ag Processing Incorporated, Mason City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000413268 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Kraft Foods Global Inc - Mason City, Mason City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000413259 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Clear Lake Sanitary District, Clear Lake
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002043495 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Lehigh Cement Co - Mason City Facility, Mason City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000767705 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.9
Reg Mason City, Mason City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031261863 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.6
Masonite Corp - 19th St Facility, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Diisocyanates. 929 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 50401LBBYW19THS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.3
Lemar-Sheffield, Sheffield
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Chromium, Lead, Nickel. Reports carcinogens. 6 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5047WHLLND2479L (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.2
Mason City Muni, Mason City
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID MCW (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 5
Golden Grain Energy, Llc, Mason City
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020160403 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Woodharbor Custom Cabinetry, Mason City
Major air pollution source. Penalties $13,750.
EPA FRS registry ID 110036353460 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Nuta Blend (Purina Animal Nutrition/Land O' Lakes), Mason City
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000413277 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.6
Stellar Industries Inc. - Mason City Plant, Mason City
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead, Nickel, Chromium, Manganese and 1 more. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 50401SCHND24211 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
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 Cerro Gordo 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 Cerro Gordo 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.

Scan an address in Cerro Gordo County View on the heat map All Iowa counties