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Shelby County, Indiana: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Shelby County is 169 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 1.6 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 404 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (120), Industrial wastewater discharge (85), Rail grade crossing (79). One correctional facility operates in the county. EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 30 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: 39.5242, -85.7912.

How this county ranks in Indiana

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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 Shelby County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	New cases	85.5	51.8	1.65xSignificant	75.4 to 96.6	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	48.6	30.2	1.61xSignificant	41.2 to 57	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	34.8	23.8	1.46xSignificant	27.8 to 43.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	20.3	14.5	1.4xSignificant	15.3 to 26.6	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	23.7	17.9	1.32xSignificant	18.2 to 30.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	18	13.9	1.29x	13.6 to 23.6	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	24	18.7	1.28x	18.7 to 30.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	7.3	5.7	1.28x	4.6 to 11.2	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7.8	6.2	1.26x	4.8 to 12.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	13.7	11.3	1.21x	9.9 to 18.7	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	535.9	453.4	1.18xSignificant	509.3 to 563.6	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	169	143.2	1.18xSignificant	154.8 to 184.4	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	5	4.6	1.09x	2.9 to 8.4	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.2	8.7	1.06x	6.1 to 13.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.5	18.5	1.05x	14.8 to 25.5	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.4	6.6	0.97x	4 to 10.1	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	12.2	13	0.94x	8 to 17.9	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 Shelby County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,558.8	9,842.6	-3%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.6	75.3	+0%	years
Child mortality	56.7	59.8	-5%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	7.2	6.2	+15%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	95.9	96.9	-1%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	39.3	28.6	+37%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 30 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde17.52 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.94 per million
Acetaldehyde1.78 per million
Benzene1.08 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 359 days: 328 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 35, peak 105.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit120
Industrial wastewater discharge85
Rail grade crossing79
Air permit holder (minor source)19
Gas station (mapped facility)18
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)16
TRI reporting facility13
Major air pollution source10
Small hazardous waste generator8
Public airport6
Large greenhouse gas emitter6
Hazardous waste transporter5
Large hazardous waste generator3
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)3
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
Brownfield property2
Scrapyard (mapped facility)2
EPA air quality monitor1
Commercial airport1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Heliport1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
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.

Bunge North America (East) Llc, Morristown
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $11,200.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Knauf Insulation Inc., Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Phenol, n-Hexane, Formaldehyde and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 2,490,191 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46176KNFFB240EL (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.4
Poet Biorefining Shelbyville Llc, Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $14,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070226399 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.9
Us Bath Group Llc - Dba - Mpl Co, Fairland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene, Dimethyl phthalate. Reports carcinogens. 599,922 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46146MPLCR203NE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.9
Freudenberg-Nok Morristown Plant, Morristown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Methyl isobutyl ketone. Reports carcinogens. 268,286 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46161FRDNB487WM (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.7
Poet Biorefining - Shelbyville, Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Acetaldehyde, n-Hexane, Acrolein, Formic acid and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 70,661 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4617WPTBRF2373W (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Bunge N.A. Inc., Morristown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane. 3,130,505 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46161CNTRL700NO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Nucor Insulated Panel Group, Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Diisocyanates, Nonylphenol Ethoxylates, Lead. Reports carcinogens. 25,636 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46176MTLSP1717M (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Ryobi Die Casting (Usa) Inc., Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc (fume or dust), Copper, Manganese, Nickel and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 14,621 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46176RYBDC800MA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.7
Jupiter Coil Coating, Fairland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Ethylbenzene, 1,2,4-Trimethylbenzene, Toluene. Reports carcinogens. 11,863 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 46126JPTRC205EC (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Bunge North America (East) Llc, Morristown
Major air pollution source. Penalties $11,200.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Knauf Insulation Incorporated, Shelbyville
Major air pollution source. Penalties $34,625.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043786365 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Bunge North America (East) Llc, Morristown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $11,200.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Knauf Insulation Gmbh, Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046234543 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.8
Freudenberg-Nok General Partnership, Morristown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396642 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.6
Bunge North America (East) Llc, Morristown
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $11,200.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Knauf Insulation Incorporated, Shelbyville
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $34,625.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043786365 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Poet Biorefining Shelbyville Llc, Shelbyville
Major air pollution source. Penalties $14,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070226399 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Us Bath Group Llc Dba Mpl Company, Fairland
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396599 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Dubois Chemicals Shelbyville, Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone. 10,867 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4617WMRCNF1329W (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.1
Poet Biorefining Shelbyville Llc, Shelbyville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $14,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070226399 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Ryobi Die Casting (Usa), Inc., Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041441062 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.9
Jupiter Coil Coating Division, Fairland
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000792526 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Bunge North America (East) Llc, Morristown
Small hazardous waste generator. Penalties $11,200.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000396624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Poet Biorefining Shelbyville Llc, Shelbyville
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $14,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070226399 (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.

Morristown Slide Correction, Shelbyville
EPA FRS registry ID
110071668290
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Shelby County

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