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Delta County, Michigan: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Delta County is 163.5 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.5 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 327 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (152), Air permit holder (minor source) (31), Brownfield property (30). 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: 45.8549, -87.1706.

How this county ranks in Michigan

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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 Delta County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	8.3	4.6	1.8xSignificant	5.1 to 13.1	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	44.1	30.2	1.46xSignificant	37.1 to 52.5	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	5.6	4.1	1.37x	3.4 to 9.2	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7.9	6.2	1.27x	4.3 to 13.3	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	4.7	3.7	1.27x	2.6 to 8.3	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	22.4	17.9	1.25x	16.7 to 29.6	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	13.9	11.3	1.23x	10.3 to 18.8	2020-2024
Leukemia	Deaths	6.9	5.7	1.21x	4.3 to 11	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	62.4	51.8	1.2xSignificant	53.9 to 72.2	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	163.5	143.2	1.14xSignificant	149.2 to 179.1	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	19.5	18.7	1.04x	14.8 to 25.7	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	13.7	13.9	0.99x	10.2 to 18.5	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	425.3	453.4	0.94x	400.4 to 451.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	17.1	18.5	0.92x	12.2 to 23.5	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	17.2	23.8	0.72x	12.1 to 23.8	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	9.6	14.5	0.66x	6 to 14.7	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	4.7	8.7	0.54x	2.7 to 8.2	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 Delta County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	8,625	9,842.6	-12%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.5	75.3	+2%	years
Child mortality	58.3	59.8	-2%	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	78	96.9	-20%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	10.1	28.6	-65%	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.

Formaldehyde9.05 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride3.02 per million
Acetaldehyde0.96 per million
Benzene0.78 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

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 crossing152
Air permit holder (minor source)31
Brownfield property30
Gas station (mapped facility)24
Industrial wastewater discharge22
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)21
NPDES wastewater discharge permit20
Major air pollution source4
Small hazardous waste generator4
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)3
Scrapyard (mapped facility)3
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
TRI reporting facility2
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)2
Public airport1
Commercial airport1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Biomass power plant1
Oil-fired power plant1
Wind power 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.

Billerud Escanaba Llc, Escanaba
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $261,934.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070295128 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Billerud Escanaba Llc, Escanaba
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ammonia, Manganese compounds, Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size) and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 3,508,352 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 49829MDPBLCOUNT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.5
Billerud Escanaba Llc, Escanaba
Major air pollution source. Penalties $261,934.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070295128 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Escanaba Wwtp, Escanaba
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $17,159.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071710672 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Billerud Escanaba Llc, Escanaba
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $261,934.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070295128 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Billerud Escanaba Llc, Escanaba
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $261,934.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070295128 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Delta Solid Waste Management Authority, Escanaba
Major air pollution source. Penalties $20,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000852792 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Billerud Escanaba Llc, Escanaba
Small hazardous waste generator. Penalties $261,934.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070295128 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Delta County, Escanaba
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID ESC (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 5
Gladstone Tank Farm, Gladstone
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110032890806 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Asplundh-Waukesha Wi-Nuisance Plant, Waukesha
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067585679 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Delta Co Landfill-Wells Twp, Escanaba
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067591056 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Gladstone Wwtp, Gladstone
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006743060 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Universal Truck & Auto, Escanaba
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070743523 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Gladstone, Gladstone
Oil-fired power plant.
Record ID 7119 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Delta Solid Waste Management Authority, Escanaba
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $20,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000852792 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Cal Grinding Inc, Escanaba
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009394137 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Great Lakes Gas Transmission Station #9, Rapid River
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001844069 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Omya, Inc. (N7709), Escanaba
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072072099 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Escanaba Generating Station, Escanaba
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000412321 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
U.P. State Fair- State Of Michigan Portion, Escanaba
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110003644209 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Norfab Manufacturing Company, Gladstone
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110037416383 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Boyde Noc Oil Terminal Property, Gladstone
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038751543 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Delta County Road Commission Garden Garage, Garden
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039058747 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Vacant Property 710 Ludington Street, Escanaba
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039059023 (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 Delta County

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