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Greenup County, Kentucky: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Greenup County is 183.2 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Leukemia deaths at 1.8 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.6 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 261 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (82), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (74), Rail grade crossing (58). 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: 38.5659, -82.9525.

How this county ranks in Kentucky

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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 Greenup County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Leukemia	Deaths	10	5.7	1.75xSignificant	6.5 to 15	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	5.8	3.4	1.71x	3.2 to 9.9	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	6.7	4.1	1.63x	4.1 to 10.8	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	21.1	13	1.62xSignificant	14.4 to 29.5	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	48.1	30.2	1.59xSignificant	40.3 to 57.2	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	75	51.8	1.45xSignificant	65.2 to 86	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	6.6	4.6	1.43x	3.8 to 10.9	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	26	18.7	1.39xSignificant	20.2 to 33.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	12	8.7	1.38x	8.2 to 17.4	2019-2023
Stomach	New cases	8.9	6.6	1.35x	5.3 to 14.2	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	183.2	143.2	1.28xSignificant	167.2 to 200.5	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.7	4.8	1.19x	3.2 to 9.6	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	21.4	18.5	1.16x	16.2 to 28	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	515.6	453.4	1.14xSignificant	487.1 to 545.5	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	15.8	13.9	1.14x	11.4 to 21.5	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	19.9	17.9	1.11x	14.5 to 26.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	26.2	23.8	1.1x	19.8 to 34.1	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.9	6.6	1.05x	4.2 to 11.2	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	11.2	11.3	0.99x	7.6 to 16.2	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	14.3	14.5	0.99x	9.8 to 20.2	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6.1	6.2	0.98x	3.4 to 10.4	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 Greenup County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	12,736.9	9,842.6	+29%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	72.5	75.3	-4%	years
Child mortality	45.7	59.8	-24%	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	132.7	96.9	+37%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	64.2	28.6	+124%	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.

Formaldehyde20.49 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.93 per million
Acetaldehyde2.15 per million
Benzene1.26 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 228 days: 221 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 36, peak 67.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Industrial wastewater discharge82
NPDES wastewater discharge permit74
Rail grade crossing58
Gas station (mapped facility)13
Air permit holder (minor source)5
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)5
Scrapyard (mapped facility)4
TRI reporting facility4
Major air pollution source3
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)3
Small hazardous waste generator2
EPA air quality monitor1
Commercial airport1
Brownfield property1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Biomass power plant1
Hydroelectric 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.

Pregis Innovative Packaging Inc, Wurtland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Dichloromethane, Ethylene glycol. Reports carcinogens. 584,433 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 41144MTKMC300HA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.9
Vesuvius Usa - Wurtland Plant, Wurtland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Chromium compounds (except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region), Nickel compounds, Chromium and Chromium Compounds(except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region), Nickel And Nickel Compounds. Reports carcinogens. 14,469 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4114WVSVSS18PRT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.7
Siloam Ngl Facility, South Shore
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane, Benzene, Cyclohexane. Reports carcinogens. 10,802 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4117WSLMNG2MARK (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Nexpera Wurtland Plant, Wurtland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Sulfuric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Hydrogen sulfide. 14,977 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 41144DPNTWHC664 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
Nexpera Llc - Wurtland Plant, Wurtland
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000379876 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.2
Markwest Energy Appalachia, Llc, South Shore
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000750875 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.7
Marathon (Mplx) Siloam Plant, South Shore
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000591262 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Nexpera Llc - Wurtland Plant, Wurtland
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000379876 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Harbisonwalker International Inc, South Shore
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Chromium compounds (except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region), Chromium and Chromium Compounds(except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region). 384 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 41175DDRTYHIGHW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5
Nexpera Llc - Wurtland Plant, Wurtland
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000379876 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Vesuvius Usa - Wurtland Plant, Wurtland
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002355772 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Greenup Wtp, Greenup
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $6,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006758892 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Aa Hwy Park Development - Blackbird Holl, Beechy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110023140475 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Pressure Tech Industrial Cleaning Services Inc, Worthington
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041673141 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Greenup/Boyd Co Port Authority, Wurtland
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110013873442 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Worthington Wwtp, Worthington
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006654619 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Tn Gas Pipeline Co Llc - Station 200, Greenup
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041027493 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Braidy Atlas Mill, Ashland
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070265564 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Greenup Joint Sewer Agency, Wurtland
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000759723 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Steel Ventures, Inc., Greenup
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $45,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070120315 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Siloam Property, South Shore
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071964314 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Greenup County Environmental Commission Wastewater Treatment Plant, Russell
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006644792 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Greenup County High School, Greenup
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110025206319 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Wurtland Collection System, Wurtland
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110069212532 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Braidy Atlas Mill, Ashland
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070265564 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3

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 Greenup County

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