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Mitchell County, Iowa: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Mitchell County is 163.5 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 138 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (78), Air permit holder (minor source) (22), Industrial wastewater discharge (8). 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: 43.362, -92.7891.

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 Mitchell 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	54.1	23.8	2.27xSignificant	36.8 to 76.9	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	19.1	14.5	1.32x	10.7 to 32.6	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	22.2	17.9	1.24x	12.6 to 37	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	163.5	143.2	1.14x	136.6 to 194.8	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	512.1	453.4	1.13xSignificant	459.5 to 569.5	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	50.4	51.8	0.97x	35.4 to 70.2	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	18.9	30.2	0.63x	10.6 to 32.2	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 Mitchell County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	5,182.9	9,842.6	-47%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	79.3	75.3	+5%	years
Child mortality	n/a	59.8	n/a	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	56.7	96.9	-41%	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.

Formaldehyde13.39 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.95 per million
Acetaldehyde1.18 per million
Benzene0.81 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing78
Air permit holder (minor source)22
Industrial wastewater discharge8
NPDES wastewater discharge permit8
TRI reporting facility4
Small hazardous waste generator3
Wind power plant3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Public airport2
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
Major air pollution source1
Gas station (mapped facility)1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Gas 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.

Sumitomo Biorational Company, Osage
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $107,214.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044321409 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Sumitomo Biorational Company, Osage
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $107,214.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044321409 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Valent Biosciences Llc, Osage
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Methanol, Hydrogen sulfide, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution) and 1 more. 86,075 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5046WVLNTB21423 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.8
Absolute Energy Llc, St Ansgar
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110027236621 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.2
Osage City Of Stp, Osage
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010034854 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Sumitomo Biorational Company, Osage
Air permit holder (minor source). Penalties $107,214.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044321409 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Wold Rim & Wheel, Saint Ansgar
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Lead, Chromium, Manganese. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 5047WWLDRM412NP (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Mitchell County Ww Pretreatment Plant, Osage
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,600.
EPA FRS registry ID 110016678479 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Riceville City Of Stp, Riceville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $5,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110036165379 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
A To Z Drying Inc, Osage
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001763208 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Saint Ansgar Wwtp, St. Ansgar
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039992050 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Wold Rim & Wheel, Saint Ansgar
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064452881 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Mitchell County Ww Pretreatment Plant, Osage
Air permit holder (minor source). Penalties $1,600.
EPA FRS registry ID 110016678479 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Absolute Energy Llc, St Ansgar
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110027236621 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Absolute Energy Llc, St Ansgar
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110027236621 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Osage (Ia), Osage
Gas power plant.
Record ID 1172 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3
A To Z Drying Inc, Osage
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitric acid, Piperonyl butoxide, Permethrin.
TRI facility ID 50461TZDRY1WALL (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Absolute Energy Llc, St Ansgar
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110027236621 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Riceville City Of Stp, Riceville
Industrial wastewater discharge. Significant/Category I Noncompliance.
NPDES permit IA0032514: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.4
Osage Muni, Osage
Public airport. O.
Record ID D02 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Orchard City Of Stp, Orchard
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010031731 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Rr Donnelley Inc - Osage, Osage
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001387687 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Meyer Garage Inc, Mcintire
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110005756119 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Stacyville, City Of Stp, Stacyville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010034300 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Mitchell County Bridge Fhwa 248750, St Ansgar
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041669236 (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 Mitchell 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 Mitchell 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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