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Washington County, Kentucky: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Washington County is 180.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. Federal databases place 129 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (58), Industrial wastewater discharge (49), Air permit holder (minor source) (5). 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: 37.7769, -85.1827.

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 Washington County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	31.8	18.5	1.72xSignificant	19.8 to 48.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	24.4	14.5	1.68xSignificant	14.6 to 38.9	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	30.1	18.7	1.61xSignificant	19.2 to 45.5	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	37.7	23.8	1.58xSignificant	24.6 to 55.7	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	26.5	17.9	1.48x	15.9 to 41.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	74.6	51.8	1.44xSignificant	57.4 to 95.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	42.1	30.2	1.39x	29.3 to 59.2	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	180.4	143.2	1.26xSignificant	152.3 to 212.7	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	552.6	453.4	1.22xSignificant	500.8 to 608.6	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	10,519.2	9,842.6	+7%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.2	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	95.9	96.9	-1%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	33.1	28.6	+16%	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.

Formaldehyde18.7 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.92 per million
Acetaldehyde2.1 per million
Benzene0.86 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 360 days: 325 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 38, peak 97.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit58
Industrial wastewater discharge49
Air permit holder (minor source)5
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)4
Gas station (mapped facility)3
Small hazardous waste generator3
Public airport2
TRI reporting facility2
Major air pollution source1
EPA air quality monitor1
Wastewater plant (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.

Alltech Inc, Springfield
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Manganese compounds, Copper compounds, Cobalt compounds. Reports carcinogens. 42,319 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4006WLLTCH223PR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.1
Alltech Inc, Springfield
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110014370661 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Inoac Automotive, Llc, Springfield
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000766350 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Toyotomi America Corp, Springfield
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003256360 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Inoac Automotive, Llc, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000766350 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Springfield Stp, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006752371 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Inoac Group N.A. Llc, Springfield
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Diisocyanates, Cyclohexane. 3 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 40069SPRNG70EAS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3.4
Applegate Fiber South, Springfield
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds. 2 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 40069CLLPK288BL (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3.3
Ktc Washington County Maintenance Garage, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $45,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006759365 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Springfield Stp, Springfield
Industrial wastewater discharge. Significant/Category I Noncompliance.
NPDES permit KY0020907: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 3
Toyotomi America Corp, Springfield
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Sodium nitrite, Zinc compounds.
TRI facility ID 40069TYTMM1SAKU (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Imi South Llc - Springfield, Springfield
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KYG110179: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.6
J&D Distilling Company Llc, Springfield
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KYR004860: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.2
Toyotomi America Corp, Springfield
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit KYR003460: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2
Inoac Automotive, Llc, Springfield
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000766350 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Lebanon Springfield/George Hoerter Fld, Springfield
Public airport. O.
Record ID 6I2 (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/13988972004 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Bluegrass Ingredients, Inc, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002108086 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Inoac Group North America Llc - Plant 2, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055631874 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Barber Cabinet Company, Springfield
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003218688 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Toyotomi America Corp, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003256360 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Springfield Wtp, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006758856 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
North Washington County Elementary School, Willisburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009933616 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Alltech Inc, Springfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110014370661 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Inoac Group North America Llc - Plant 2, Springfield
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015722280 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5

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 Washington 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 Washington 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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