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Washington County, Indiana: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Washington County is 176.5 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 1.9 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 196 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (61), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (59), Rail grade crossing (48). 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: 38.6044, -86.097.

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 Washington County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	57.3	30.2	1.9xSignificant	47.2 to 69.3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	81	51.8	1.56xSignificant	68.9 to 94.9	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	176.5	143.2	1.23xSignificant	157.4 to 197.4	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	20.8	17.9	1.16x	14.3 to 29.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.4	18.5	1.05x	13.3 to 27.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	11.5	11.3	1.02x	7.1 to 17.9	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	418.3	453.4	0.92x	388.1 to 450.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	11.6	13.9	0.83x	7.2 to 18.1	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	18.9	23.8	0.79x	12.7 to 27.2	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	10.8	14.5	0.74x	6.2 to 17.6	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	13.4	18.7	0.72x	8.6 to 20.1	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 Washington County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	13,005	9,842.6	+32%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	72.5	75.3	-4%	years
Child mortality	78.9	59.8	+32%	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	121	96.9	+25%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	47.3	28.6	+65%	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.

Formaldehyde19.22 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.93 per million
Acetaldehyde1.95 per million
Benzene0.93 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Industrial wastewater discharge61
NPDES wastewater discharge permit59
Rail grade crossing48
Air permit holder (minor source)9
Public airport5
Gas station (mapped facility)4
TRI reporting facility3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Heliport2
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Small hazardous waste generator1

Highest-severity records

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

Netshape Technologies - Campbellsburg Facility, Campbellsburg
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Nickel, Chromium, Copper. Reports carcinogens. 3,923 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 47108HLSLNSTATE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.3
Kimball Office - Salem, Salem
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Phosphorus (yellow or white), Lead, Cobalt, Nickel and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 57 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 47167KMBLLHWY56 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.9
Netshape Technologies - Campbellsburg Facility, Campbellsburg
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000401841 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.7
Campbellsburg Municipal Wwtp, Campbellsburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009975045 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Gkn Sinter Metals, Salem
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Manganese, Copper. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 47167FRRLYBECKS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Flexcel Salem, Salem
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003092233 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Gkn Sinter Metals, Salem
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030465672 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Salem Wwtp, Salem
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009975198 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Salem Wwtp, Salem
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0021644: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 3
Independent Stave Company - Southern Indiana Mill, Salem
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071880541 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
New Pekin Wastewater Treatment Plant, New Pekin
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0021059: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.6
Globe Industrial Llc, Pekin
Small hazardous waste generator. Penalties $14,800.
EPA FRS registry ID 110063678319 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Jeans Extrusions Inc, Salem
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009975786 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Campbellsburg Municipal Wwtp, Campbellsburg
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0022489: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.2
Salem Water Works - Lake John Hay Water Plant, Salem
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0059404: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.1
Netshape Technologies - Campbellsburg Facility, Campbellsburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000401841 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Irving Materials Inc, Salem
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012021702 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Salem Muni, Salem
Public airport. O.
Record ID I83 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
West Washington Elem & High School Wwtp, Campbellsburg
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0031577: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1.9
Delaney Park Wwtp, Salem
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit IN0051055: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1.8
Lake John Hay Water Treatment Plant, Salem
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006680742 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Delaney Park Wwtp, Salem
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006765027 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
New Pekin Wastewater Treatment Plant, Pekin
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009975287 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
West Washington Elem & High School Wwtp, Campbellsburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110036905560 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Temple And Temple Excavating And Paving Incorporated, Salem
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110059694040 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8

Correctional facilities

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

In Dot Bridge Correction Des No 1700173, New Pekin
EPA FRS registry ID
110070926453
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Washington 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 Washington 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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