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Kankakee County, Illinois: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Kankakee County is 166.2 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.3 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 876 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (211), Rail grade crossing (188), Air permit holder (minor source) (174). One correctional facility operates in the county. 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: 41.1353, -87.8842.

How this county ranks in Illinois

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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 Kankakee County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	7.4	4.6	1.61xSignificant	5.5 to 9.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	2.9	2	1.45x	1.8 to 4.6	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	74.2	51.8	1.43xSignificant	67.9 to 80.9	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	5.1	3.7	1.38x	3.6 to 7.1	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	40.6	30.2	1.34xSignificant	36 to 45.6	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	24.5	18.7	1.31xSignificant	20.9 to 28.5	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	3.4	2.7	1.26x	2.2 to 5.1	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	22.4	17.9	1.25xSignificant	18.8 to 26.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	6.8	5.7	1.19x	4.9 to 9.1	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	166.2	143.2	1.16xSignificant	156.6 to 176.2	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	12.9	11.3	1.14x	10.3 to 15.9	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.4	4.8	1.13x	3.8 to 7.5	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	509.3	453.4	1.12xSignificant	492 to 527	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	3.8	3.4	1.12x	2.5 to 5.6	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	15.1	13.9	1.09x	12.3 to 18.3	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	15.7	14.5	1.08x	12.7 to 19.2	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.9	18.5	1.08x	16.6 to 23.7	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	25.6	23.8	1.08x	21.8 to 30	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.9	8.7	1.02x	6.8 to 11.5	2019-2023
Stomach	New cases	6.5	6.6	0.98x	4.7 to 8.8	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	4	4.1	0.98x	2.6 to 5.8	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6	6.2	0.97x	4.2 to 8.4	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	4	4.4	0.91x	2.5 to 5.9	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	5.9	6.6	0.89x	4.2 to 8	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	8.8	13	0.68x	6.4 to 11.8	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 Kankakee County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,618.2	9,842.6	+8%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.6	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	53.1	59.8	-11%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	8	6.2	+29%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	90	96.9	-7%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	40.8	28.6	+43%	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.

Formaldehyde15.22 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.97 per million
Acetaldehyde1.36 per million
Benzene1.01 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit211
Rail grade crossing188
Air permit holder (minor source)174
Industrial wastewater discharge124
Gas station (mapped facility)40
Brownfield property27
Small hazardous waste generator25
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)16
TRI reporting facility14
Major air pollution source10
Public airport7
Large greenhouse gas emitter6
Large hazardous waste generator6
Solar power plant6
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)4
Combined sewer overflow outfall3
Hazardous waste transporter3
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)3
Heliport2
Airfield1
Commercial airport1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Hydroelectric plant1
Gas power plant1
Scrapyard (mapped facility)1
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.

Cross Brothers Pail Recycling (Pembroke), Pembroke Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 42. NPL Site.
EPA site ID ILD980792303 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Crown Beverage Packaging, Bradley
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Certain glycol ethers, n-Butyl alcohol, Hydrogen fluoride, Lead and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,871,469 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60915CRWNC1035E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.3
Sherwin-Williams Co, Kankakee
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), n-Butyl alcohol, Ethylbenzene, Methyl isobutyl ketone and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 181,811 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60901THVLS901NO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.5
Kensing Llc, Kankakee
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: 1,2-Dichloroethane, Methanol, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Peracetic acid. Reports carcinogens. 82,320 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60901HNKLCSKENS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.3
Rohm & Haas Chemicals Llc, Kankakee
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Vinyl acetate, Acetaldehyde, Ammonia, Methyl methacrylate and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 22,372 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60901NCLCH1400H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.8
Armstrong Flooring Inc, Kankakee
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110005809704 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.7
Nucor Steel Kankakee Inc, Bourbonnais
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Manganese compounds, Mercury And Mercury Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 13,357 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60914BRMNGRR1BO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.7
Iko Midwest Inc, Kankakee
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Aluminum oxide (fibrous forms), Xylene (mixed isomers), Naphthalene, Ethylbenzene and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 3,761 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60901KMDWS235WS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
American Highway, Kankakee
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018075919 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Csl Behring, Bradley
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Methanol, Ethylene glycol. 128,004 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60915RMRPHRT50A (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
Kensing Llc, Kankakee
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $363,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043972207 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.8
Rohm & Haas Chemical Llc, Kankakee
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $300,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041020631 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.6
Crown Beverage Packaging, Bradley
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064141021 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.6
Ardex, Bourbonnais
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane, Toluene, Certain glycol ethers. 39,645 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60914THWWH150MO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.5
Armstrong Flooring Inc, Kankakee
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110005809704 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Qt Kankakee, Llc, Kankakee
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038132883 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Csl Behring Llc, Bradley
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000557594 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Ahf Products, Kankakee
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Lead. Reports carcinogens. 176 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60901RMSTRRT50N (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
American Highway (A Simplex Company), Kankakee
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Nickel. Reports carcinogens. 132 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 60901DYTNS2150B (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.1
Sherwin Williams Mfg Co, Kankakee
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000436225 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Armstrong Flooring Inc, Kankakee
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110005809704 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Manteno Stw, Village Of, Manteno
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009988585 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Qt Kankakee, Llc, Kankakee
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038132883 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Nucor Steel Kankakee Inc, Bourbonnais
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038174098 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Kankakee River Metropolitan Agency - Krma, Kankakee
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000538311 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5

Correctional facilities

Prisons, jails and corrections operations with an EPA facility record, and the drinking water and wastewater compliance attached to them.

Department Of Corrections Kankakee Minimum Security Unit, Manteno
EPA FRS registry ID
110072202193
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Kankakee County

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