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Oxford County, Maine: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Oxford County is 159.3 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Esophagus deaths at 1.6 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.3 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 327 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (98), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (50), Gas station (mapped facility) (31). 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: 44.5672, -70.6549.

How this county ranks in Maine

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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 Oxford County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	7.8	4.6	1.7xSignificant	5.3 to 11.3	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	6	3.7	1.62xSignificant	3.9 to 8.9	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	74.5	51.8	1.44xSignificant	66.9 to 82.8	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	25.9	18.7	1.39xSignificant	21.5 to 31.1	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	40.2	30.2	1.33xSignificant	34.9 to 46.3	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.6	4.4	1.27x	3.4 to 8.8	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	5.2	4.1	1.27x	3.3 to 7.9	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	4.3	3.4	1.26x	2.6 to 7	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	16.4	13	1.26x	11.9 to 22	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7.4	6.2	1.19x	4.8 to 11.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	17	14.5	1.17x	12.9 to 22.2	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	20.5	17.9	1.15x	16.4 to 25.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	20.6	18.5	1.11x	16.5 to 25.6	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	159.3	143.2	1.11xSignificant	148 to 171.4	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.2	4.8	1.08x	3.4 to 7.9	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	482.2	453.4	1.06xSignificant	461.2 to 504	2019-2023
Stomach	New cases	6.9	6.6	1.05x	4.6 to 10.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	10.8	11.3	0.96x	8.1 to 14.4	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	12.9	13.9	0.93x	9.8 to 16.9	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	4.8	5.7	0.84x	2.9 to 7.8	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	7.1	8.7	0.82x	5 to 10.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	5	6.6	0.76x	3.2 to 7.6	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	18	23.8	0.76x	13.9 to 23	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 Oxford County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,427.7	9,842.6	-4%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.1	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	69.3	59.8	+16%	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	118.2	96.9	+22%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	39.1	28.6	+37%	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.

Formaldehyde10.96 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.99 per million
Acetaldehyde1.34 per million
Benzene1.02 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 277 good, 3 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 38, peak 135.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing98
NPDES wastewater discharge permit50
Gas station (mapped facility)31
Brownfield property29
Air permit holder (minor source)25
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)18
Industrial wastewater discharge17
Small hazardous waste generator8
Public airport7
Large hazardous waste generator7
Airfield5
Heliport5
Major air pollution source3
Hydroelectric plant3
Wind power plant3
EPA air quality monitor2
Combined sewer overflow outfall2
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
Landfill (mapped facility)2
Gas power plant2
Commercial airport1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Battery storage plant1
Biomass power plant1
Solar power plant1
Scrapyard (mapped facility)1
TRI reporting facility1
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)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.

Nd Paper Inc. - Rumford Div, Rumford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ammonia, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size) and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 2,060,396 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 04276BSCSCROUTE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.3
Mead Oxford Corporation, Rumford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110058114776 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.1
Mainehealth Stephens Hospital, Norway
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $22,740.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039670193 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Rumford-Mexico Wastewater Treatment Facility, Mexico
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006618730 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Rumford Avenue Parking Lot (RAP), Rumford (census name for Rumford Compact)
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 230172011 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 5.1
Saunders Brothers - Locke Mills Plant, Greenwood
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003554699 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Saunders Brothers - Locke Mills Plant, Greenwood
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003554699 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Saunders Brothers - Locke Mills Plant, Greenwood
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110003554699 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Mead Oxford Corporation, Rumford
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110058114776 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Paris Utility District Wwtf, South Paris
Combined sewer overflow outfall. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit ME0100951:001 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Paris Utility District Wwtf, South Paris
Combined sewer overflow outfall. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit ME0100951:SL1 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 4
Wastewater Treatment Facility, South Paris
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008435498 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Bethel Wastewater Treatment Facility, Bethel
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009912880 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Norway Wastewater Treatment Facility, Norway
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009913175 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Irving Forest Products - Dixfield, Dixfield
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007273011 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Rumford Power Llc, Rumford
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017437781 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Mead Oxford Corporation, Rumford
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110058114776 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Mead Oxford Corporation, Rumford
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110058114776 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Rumford Power Llc, Rumford
Gas power plant.
Record ID 55100 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3.3
Mead Rumford Cogen, Rumford
Gas power plant.
Record ID 10491 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3
Robinson Manufacturing Company, Oxford
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000763111 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Holy Savior School, Rumford
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038434450 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Diamond Match Mill, Peru
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038691573 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Route 108 Junkyard, Rumford
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038753097 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Cb Cummings Mill, Norway
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038753328 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) 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 Oxford County

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