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Harper County, Kansas: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Harper County is 197.2 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. Federal databases place 268 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Air permit holder (minor source) (165), Rail grade crossing (44), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (19). 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: 37.1935, -98.0754.

How this county ranks in Kansas

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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 Harper County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
All cancer	Deaths	197.2	143.2	1.38xSignificant	155.2 to 248.3	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	552.1	453.4	1.22xSignificant	477.8 to 635.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	36.4	30.2	1.21x	20.8 to 61.7	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	61.6	51.8	1.19x	40.8 to 91.7	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 Harper County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,227.5	9,842.6	-6%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.8	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	115.1	96.9	+19%	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: 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.

Formaldehyde17.21 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.85 per million
Acetaldehyde1.34 per million
Benzene0.74 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Air permit holder (minor source)165
Rail grade crossing44
NPDES wastewater discharge permit19
Industrial wastewater discharge14
Major air pollution source4
Brownfield property3
Large hazardous waste generator3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Public airport2
Gas power plant2
TRI reporting facility2
Airfield1
Commercial airport1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Small hazardous waste generator1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Wind 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.

Harper Industries, Harper
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Diisocyanates, Chromium, Nickel, Manganese and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 10,891 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 6705WHRPRN151EH (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Harper Industries, Inc., Harper
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006764000 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.9
Elco Manufacturing Inc, Harper
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 67058LCMFG939NS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Anthony Mun. Power Plant, Anthony
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007067681 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Elco Manufacturing Inc, Harper
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017584489 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Pioneer Exploration - Spivey Station(Air-Closed), Attica
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010334931 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Waste Connections - Plumb Thicket Landfill, Harper
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110024523924 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Plumb Thicket Rng (Sagepoint Energy) (Air), Harper
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071524401 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Kingman Municipal Power And Light Plant, Kingman
Gas power plant.
Record ID 1296 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3
Anthony, Anthony
Gas power plant.
Record ID 1258 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3
Danville City Building, Danville
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110060461986 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Anthony Dentistry Bta, Anthony
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071968477 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Monfort Processing Plant, Harper
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071969968 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Harper Industries, Inc., Harper
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006764000 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Waste Connections - Plumb Thicket Landfill, Harper
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110024523924 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Plumb Thicket Rng, Harper
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072028365 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Bnsf Danville Ks Derailment, Danville
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072242100 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Central Electropolishing Co, Anthony
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Nitric acid.
TRI facility ID 67003CNTRL124NO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Harper Wwtf, Harper
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010666868 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Waste Connections - Plumb Thicket Landfill, Harper
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110024523924 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Anthony Waste Water Treatment Plant C/O City Hall, Anthony
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011220589 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Harper Muni, Harper
Public airport. O.
Record ID 8K2 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Anthony Muni, Anthony
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID ANY (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Central Electropolishing Co (Celco), Anthony
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000446081 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Central Electropolishing Co (Celco), Anthony
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000446081 (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.

No correctional facility with an EPA record is located in this county.

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Harper County

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