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Shelby County, Kentucky: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Shelby County is 159.9 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Kidney & renal pelvis deaths at 1.9 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.4 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 602 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (232), Industrial wastewater discharge (220), Rail grade crossing (74). 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: 38.1963, -85.2104.

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 Shelby County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	6.5	3.4	1.91xSignificant	4 to 10.2	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	40.9	30.2	1.35xSignificant	34 to 48.8	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	31.2	23.8	1.31xSignificant	24.8 to 38.7	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	8.1	6.2	1.31x	5.1 to 12.3	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	64.9	51.8	1.25xSignificant	56 to 74.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.9	4.8	1.23x	3.5 to 9.4	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	17.7	14.5	1.22x	13 to 23.5	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	10.5	8.7	1.21x	7.2 to 15	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	20.1	17.9	1.12x	15.2 to 26.2	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	159.9	143.2	1.12xSignificant	145.7 to 175.2	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	7.3	6.6	1.11x	4.6 to 11.1	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	12.1	11.3	1.07x	8.5 to 16.8	2020-2024
Leukemia	Deaths	6	5.7	1.05x	3.4 to 9.8	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	477	453.4	1.05x	452 to 503	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	18.9	18.5	1.02x	14.2 to 24.6	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	13.2	13	1.02x	9 to 18.7	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	14.1	13.9	1.01x	10.2 to 19.2	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	17.2	18.7	0.92x	12.7 to 22.9	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 Shelby County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	8,676.3	9,842.6	-12%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.2	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	50.4	59.8	-16%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.6	6.2	-10%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	92.8	96.9	-4%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	40.8	28.6	+43%	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.

Formaldehyde19.63 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.92 per million
Acetaldehyde2.15 per million
Benzene1.02 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit232
Industrial wastewater discharge220
Rail grade crossing74
Gas station (mapped facility)19
Brownfield property10
TRI reporting facility7
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)7
Air permit holder (minor source)6
Public airport6
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)6
Major air pollution source5
Small hazardous waste generator4
Large hazardous waste generator3
Hazardous waste transporter2
Large greenhouse gas emitter1

Highest-severity records

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

Matalco Shelbyville Llc, Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Aluminum (fume or dust), Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Copper And Copper Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 39,871 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 40065HVLLY1100I (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Matalco Shelbyville Llc, Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377896 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.2
Voestalpine Roll Forming Inc., Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Lead. Reports carcinogens. 92 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 40065RLLFR1070B (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6
Greenfield Global Usa Inc., Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Toluene. 3,373 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 40065PRLLH11ISA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.7
Greenfield Global Usa Inc., Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377930 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Amcor Packaging, Inc., Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377912 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Katayama American Company Inc., Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002108068 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Roll Forming Corp, Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377949 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.9
Amcor Packaging, Inc., Shelbyville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377912 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Black & Decker (Formerly: American Emblem Tool Co), Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377921 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Stanley Black & Decker, Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 40065MRCNM1251H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Process Machinery Inc., Shelbyville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Lead, Chromium, Manganese and 1 more. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 4006WPRCSS1636I (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
F B Purnell Sausage Co, Simpsonville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $8,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003221497 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Ficosa N America Corp, Shelbyville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377887 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Amcor Packaging, Inc., Shelbyville
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377912 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Amcor Packaging, Inc., Shelbyville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377912 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Cedarmore Camp & Conference Center East, Bagdad
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009936999 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Process Machinery Inc., Shelbyville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071198104 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Shelbyville Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant, Shelbyville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000732217 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Loves Travel Stop & Country, Waddy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006750113 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Amcor Pharmaceutical Packaging Usa Inc, Shelbyville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040445051 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Creative Packaging Co, Shelbyville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071655061 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Ficosa N America Corp, Shelbyville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000377887 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Persimmon Ridge Wwtf, Louisville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022418579 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Shelbyville Battery Manufacturing Inc, Shelbyville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071655060 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5

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 Shelby 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 Shelby 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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