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Cass County, Minnesota: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Cass County is 142.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Esophagus deaths at 2.2 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 181 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (38), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (35), Industrial wastewater discharge (32). 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: 46.8729, -94.2174.

How this county ranks in Minnesota

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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 Cass County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	10.2	4.6	2.22xSignificant	6.3 to 15.9	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	8.2	3.7	2.22xSignificant	5.1 to 13	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	39.9	23.8	1.68xSignificant	31.8 to 49.9	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	27.6	18.7	1.48xSignificant	21.8 to 34.9	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	58.7	51.8	1.13x	49.9 to 68.9	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	510.7	453.4	1.13xSignificant	480.9 to 542.1	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.3	8.7	1.07x	5.8 to 14.8	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	14.7	13.9	1.06x	10.3 to 20.8	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	142.7	143.2	1x	128.1 to 158.8	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	12.8	13	0.98x	7.4 to 20.6	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	18	18.5	0.97x	12.8 to 25	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	28.8	30.2	0.95x	22.8 to 36.4	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	16.9	17.9	0.94x	11.5 to 24.3	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	9.5	11.3	0.84x	6.2 to 14.4	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	5.3	6.6	0.8x	3.1 to 9.4	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	11.2	14.5	0.77x	7.5 to 16.6	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 Cass County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	12,950.9	9,842.6	+32%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.6	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	99.3	59.8	+66%	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	139.6	96.9	+44%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	37	28.6	+29%	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.

Formaldehyde10.84 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.96 per million
Benzene0.99 per million
Acetaldehyde0.97 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 364 days: 301 good, 13 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 28, peak 177.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing38
NPDES wastewater discharge permit35
Industrial wastewater discharge32
Gas station (mapped facility)22
Brownfield property13
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)7
Air permit holder (minor source)6
Public airport5
Airfield4
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)4
Commercial airport2
Heliport2
Hydroelectric plant2
EPA air quality monitor1
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Small hazardous waste generator1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Scrapyard (mapped facility)1
Superfund (NPL) site1
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.

St. Regis Paper Co., Cass Lake
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 52.9. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MND057597940 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Evelands Inc, Backus
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 45,501 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 56435CLNDSHWY37 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.1
Evelands Inc, Backus
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000594866 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Leech Lake Nation:, Cass Lake
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 270213410 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 5.5
Uscoe Leech Lake Rec Area Wwtp, Federal Dam
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008799014 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Pine River Area Sanitary District, Pine River
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031108888 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
U.S. Public Health Service Hospital, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008699088 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Former Box Factory Parcel 2, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038747470 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Onigum St. John Church/Parish Hall, Onigum
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041260989 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Division Of Resource Management, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041260998 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Pauline Johnston Sawdust Pile, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043242924 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Fischer'S Pub, Pine River
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044762940 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Tom'S Resort, Pike Bay Township
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067967873 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Evergreen Industries, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071449060 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
R&R Repair, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071978626 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Wahboze Bay Methamphetamine Laboratory, Bena
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071982969 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Bena Transfer Station, Bena
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071982979 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Onigum Transfer Station, Onigum
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071982981 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Eagle View Hotel, Cass Lake
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071983923 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Saint Regis Paper Co Site, Cass Lake
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000910444 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Pillager, Pillager
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008803198 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Pine River Area Sanitary District, Pine River
Industrial wastewater discharge. Violation Identified.
NPDES permit MN0046388: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 3
Remer Wwtp, Remer
Industrial wastewater discharge. No Violation Identified.
NPDES permit MNG585210: (U.S. EPA NPDES)
Severity 3
Longville Wwtp, Longville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008799167 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2
Ftm Inc, Pillager
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067749672 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2

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 Cass County

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