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Butte County, Idaho: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Butte County is 181.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 49 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (19), Gas station (mapped facility) (5), Wastewater plant (mapped facility) (5). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 10 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: 43.7586, -113.0821.

How this county ranks in Idaho

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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 Butte County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
All cancer	Deaths	181.7	143.2	1.27x	128.7 to 253.5	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	453.7	453.4	1x	358 to 569.5	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 Butte County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	12,579.1	9,842.6	+28%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.3	75.3	-1%	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	128.9	96.9	+33%	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: 10 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde8.03 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.5 per million
Acetaldehyde0.84 per million
Pahpom0.71 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 364 days: 328 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 42, peak 77.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing19
Gas station (mapped facility)5
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)5
Industrial wastewater discharge4
Air permit holder (minor source)3
Public airport3
NPDES wastewater discharge permit2
EPA air quality monitor1
Airfield1
Commercial airport1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Superfund (NPL) site1
TRI reporting facility1

Highest-severity records

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

Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (USDOE), Idaho Falls
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 51.9. NPL Site.
EPA site ID ID4890008952 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Ineel Technology And Engineering Center, Howe
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017424679 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Ineel Central Facilities Area, Howe
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110061007823 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Ineel Central Facilities Area, Howe
Hazardous waste transporter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110061007823 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Arco-Butte County, Arco
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID AOC (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Big Southern Butte, Atomic City
Public airport. O.
Record ID U46 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Antelope Valley, Moore
Public airport. O.
Record ID U92 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Howe, Howe
Public airport. O.
Record ID U97 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/370356556 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Remote Handling Low-Level Waste facility
Landfill (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/741322313 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/883243540 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/883251254 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/883263227 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/883297219 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Butte County Idaho Landfill Cell 1 Closure, Arco
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071444183 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Arco-Butte County Airport, Arco
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072230010 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Arco Feed & Fertilizer, Arco
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110001756644 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1
Ineel Advanced Test Reactor Complex, Howe
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110017393131 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1
Lost River Auto Body, Arco
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110043513579 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1
Private, Butte City
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 811783M (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1
Us-20/Us-26, Atomic City
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 812079U (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1
Private, Arco
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 812087L (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1
Private, Arco
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 812088T (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1
Private, Arco
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 812089A (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1
Private, Arco
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 812090U (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1

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 Butte County

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