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Meade County, Kentucky: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Meade County is 170.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Liver & bile duct deaths at 1.7 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.6 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 166 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Industrial wastewater discharge (80), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (37), Rail grade crossing (19). 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: 37.9982, -86.2506.

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 Meade County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	New cases	98.2	51.8	1.9xSignificant	84.1 to 114.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	27.2	14.5	1.88xSignificant	19.8 to 36.4	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	11.4	6.6	1.73xSignificant	7.1 to 17.7	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	49.1	30.2	1.63xSignificant	39.4 to 60.6	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	27.9	17.9	1.56xSignificant	20.5 to 37.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	11.1	8.7	1.28x	6.6 to 17.7	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	30	23.8	1.26x	22.2 to 39.9	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	23.2	18.7	1.24x	16.5 to 31.9	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	551.4	453.4	1.22xSignificant	516.7 to 587.9	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	170.7	143.2	1.19xSignificant	151.7 to 191.6	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	21.6	18.5	1.17x	15.2 to 30	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	8.6	11.3	0.76x	5 to 14.1	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	10.2	13.9	0.73x	6.1 to 16.3	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 Meade County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,457.4	9,842.6	-4%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.1	75.3	-0%	years
Child mortality	49.4	59.8	-17%	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	97.2	96.9	+0%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	37.2	28.6	+30%	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.

Formaldehyde20.08 per million
Ethylene Oxide4.78 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.93 per million
Acetaldehyde2.17 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Industrial wastewater discharge80
NPDES wastewater discharge permit37
Rail grade crossing19
Gas station (mapped facility)7
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)4
Major air pollution source3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)3
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
Large hazardous waste generator2
Hazardous waste transporter2
TRI reporting facility2
Brownfield property1
Scrapyard (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.

Monument Chemical Kentucky Llc, Brandenburg
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Ammonia, Propylene oxide, n-Hexane and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 663,746 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 40108LNCRPHIGHW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9
Monument Chemical Kentucky Llc, Brandenburg
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377976 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.6
Nucor Steel Brandenburg, Brandenburg
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Manganese compounds, Polycyclic aromatic compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 11,093 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4010WNCRST1RNNI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Nucor Steel Brandenburg, Brandenburg
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071263625 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.7
Nucor Steel Brandenburg, Brandenburg
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071062710 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Nucor Steel Brandenburg, Brandenburg
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071062710 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Monument Chemical Kentucky Llc, Brandenburg
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377976 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Monument Chemical Kentucky Llc, Brandenburg
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377976 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Monument Chemical Kentucky Llc, Brandenburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377976 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Nucor Steel Brandenburg, Brandenburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071062710 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Dawkins On-Site. Llc - Nucor Kentucky Portable, Brandenburg
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Lead And Lead Compounds, Mercury And Mercury Compounds. 13 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4010WDWKNS1234R (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3.9
Monument Chemical Kentucky Llc, Brandenburg
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377976 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Louisville Gas & Electric Co - Muldraugh Transmission Station, Muldraugh
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012155755 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Nucor Steel Brandenburg, Brandenburg
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071263625 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Derby Tank Car, Ekron
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071978441 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Battletown Materials Llc - Battletown Quarry, Battletown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010425156 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Mulzer Crushed Stone, Riverside Quarry, Battletown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071896696 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Brandenburg Stp, Brandenburg
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KY0021474: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.6
Doe Valley Utilities Subdivision, Brandenburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006751201 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Ktc Meade County Maintenance Garage, Brandenburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $45,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006759098 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Muldragh Water Treatment Plant, City Of Muldraugh
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KYG640205: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.5
Mulzer Crushed Stone, Riverside Quarry, Battletown
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KYG840408: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.1
Meade Co State Maintenance Garage, Brandenburg
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KYR004655: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.1
Riverside Stone Co, Wolf Creek
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006810647 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/1136833095 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2

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 Meade 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 Meade 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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