MI / county FIPS 26083 / county research

Keweenaw County, Michigan: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Keweenaw County is 147.5 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 21 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Gas station (mapped facility) (6), Industrial wastewater discharge (6), Brownfield property (3). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 10 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: 47.3411, -88.1983.

How this county ranks in Michigan

View on the heat map Scan an address in this county

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 Keweenaw County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
All cancer	Deaths	147.5	143.2	1.03x	98.7 to 223.1	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	277.2	453.4	0.61x	201.8 to 380.3	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 Keweenaw County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	6,845	9,842.6	-30%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	79.2	75.3	+5%	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	131.6	96.9	+36%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	n/a	28.6	n/a	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 10 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde7.48 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride3.01 per million
Acetaldehyde0.73 per million
Benzene0.56 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 41 days: 41 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 8, peak 31.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Gas station (mapped facility)6
Industrial wastewater discharge6
Brownfield property3
Landfill (mapped facility)2
NPDES wastewater discharge permit2
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.

Keweenaw Co-Mt H Greeley Wwsl, Mohawk
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064284509 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Copper Harbor Wwtp, Copper Harbor
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011839029 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Former Calumet Air Force Station, Mohawk
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071968982 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Lp-Mohawk, Mohawk
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071968988 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Mohawk Mobil, Mohawk
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071968990 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Keweenaw Co-Mt H Greeley Wwsl, Mohawk
Industrial wastewater discharge. Significant/Category I Noncompliance.
NPDES permit MIG580211: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 2.2
Former Landfill
Landfill (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/1391428155 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Stamp Sand
Landfill (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/216212684 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/617160993 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Fuel Station
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/2322793776 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Bear Belly Pit Stop
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/7747504415 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Fuel Station
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/7747586382 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Fuel Station
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/7750431165 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
North Star BP
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/225129015 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Copper Harbor Fuel Stop, Copper Harbor
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/225135024 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Isle Royale National Park, Houghton
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit MIG570177:001 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1
Isle Royale National Park, Houghton
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit MIG570177:SLD (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1
Keweenaw Co-Mt H Greeley Wwsl, Mohawk
Industrial wastewater discharge. Significant/Category I Noncompliance.
NPDES permit MIG580211:001 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1
Keweenaw Co-Mt H Greeley Wwsl, Mohawk
Industrial wastewater discharge. Significant/Category I Noncompliance.
NPDES permit MIG580211:SLD (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1
Isle Royale Np-Mott Island Wtp, Houghton
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit MIG640229:001 (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 1
Isle Royale NP
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 260839000 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 0

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 Keweenaw 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 Keweenaw 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.

Scan an address in Keweenaw County View on the heat map All Michigan counties