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Sullivan County, Indiana: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Sullivan County is 171.7 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 400 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (163), Rail grade crossing (95), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (66). 2 correctional facilities operate 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: 39.0801, -87.4195.

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 Sullivan County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	47.3	30.2	1.57xSignificant	36.6 to 60.3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	79.9	51.8	1.54xSignificant	66.1 to 96.2	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	16.3	13	1.25x	9.7 to 25.7	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	10.6	8.7	1.22x	6 to 17.8	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	171.7	143.2	1.2xSignificant	150.8 to 195.1	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	19.9	17.9	1.11x	12.8 to 29.8	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	11.7	11.3	1.04x	6.6 to 19.5	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	448.6	453.4	0.99x	413.7 to 485.9	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	17.1	18.7	0.91x	10.8 to 26	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	18.4	23.8	0.77x	11.9 to 27.6	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	12.1	18.5	0.65x	7.1 to 19.8	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 Sullivan County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,726.8	9,842.6	-1%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.2	75.3	-0%	years
Child mortality	92.5	59.8	+55%	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	82.2	96.9	-15%	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: 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.

Formaldehyde18.71 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.96 per million
Acetaldehyde1.86 per million
Benzene0.85 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Industrial wastewater discharge163
Rail grade crossing95
NPDES wastewater discharge permit66
Brownfield property15
Combined sewer overflow outfall10
Gas station (mapped facility)10
Air permit holder (minor source)8
Major air pollution source6
TRI reporting facility5
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)5
Public airport2
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
Correctional facility (prison or jail)2
Large hazardous waste generator2
Small hazardous waste generator2
Hazardous waste transporter2
Commercial airport1
Coal power plant1
Other power plant1
Solar power plant1
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)1

Highest-severity records

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

Merom Generating Station, Sullivan
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Barium And Barium Compounds, Zinc compounds, Sulfuric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Vanadium compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 6,087,083 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 47882MRMGNHWY54 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.7
Brampton Brick, Farmersburg
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031119402 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.6
Hoosier Energy Merom Generating Station, Sullivan
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000592831 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.3
Raybestos Powertrain Llc, Sullivan
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Manganese, Lead. Reports carcinogens. 3,434 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 47882LLMTC69ECH (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Merom, Sullivan
Coal power plant.
Record ID 6213 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 7
Raybestos Powertrain Llc, Sullivan
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Lead. Reports carcinogens. 782 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 47882WNSBR110IN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.7
Brickcraft Inc, Farmersburg
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrogen fluoride, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Barium And Barium Compounds, Chromium and Chromium Compounds(except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region) and 2 more. 28,348 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 47850BRMPT1256E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.4
Brampton Brick, Farmersburg
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031119402 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 5.9
Raybestos Powertrain, Llc, Sullivan
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110042001614 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Bear Run Mine, Carlisle
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead compounds. 1,853 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4783WBRRNM7255E (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.5
Bear Run Mine, Carlisle
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070813579 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Raybestos Powertrain Llc, Sullivan
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000767377 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006367056 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Hallador Power Company Llc - Merom Generating Station, Merom
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064638931 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Hoosier Energy Merom Generating Station, Sullivan
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000592831 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:001 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:002 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:003 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:004 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:005 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:007 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:008 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:025 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Sullivan Wwtp, Sullivan
Combined sewer overflow outfall. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0024554:101 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4

Correctional facilities

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

Wabash Valley Correctional Facility, Carlisle
EPA FRS registry ID
110006008827
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
Sullivan County Sheriff'S Office And Correctional Facility, Sullivan
EPA FRS registry ID
110071295149
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Sullivan 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 Sullivan 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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