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Washington County, Minnesota: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Washington County is 128.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 536 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (93), Industrial wastewater discharge (67), Gas station (mapped facility) (63). 4 correctional facilities operate in the county. 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: 45.0215, -92.8735.

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 Washington County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	56.2	23.8	2.36xSignificant	52.5 to 60.1	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	25.8	18.5	1.39xSignificant	23.3 to 28.4	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	17.1	14.5	1.18xSignificant	15.1 to 19.2	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	2.3	2	1.15x	1.6 to 3.2	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	520	453.4	1.15xSignificant	508.8 to 531.4	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	6.5	5.7	1.14x	5.3 to 7.9	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.2	4.8	1.08x	4.1 to 6.4	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	20.2	18.7	1.08x	18.1 to 22.5	2019-2023
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	17.7	16.4	1.08x	13 to 23.7	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6.6	6.2	1.06x	5.4 to 8	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	14.7	13.9	1.06x	12.9 to 16.7	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	11.6	11.3	1.03x	10 to 13.3	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	6.7	6.6	1.02x	5.5 to 8.1	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	4.4	4.4	1x	3.4 to 5.5	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	17.8	17.9	0.99x	15.8 to 20	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	4.5	4.6	0.98x	3.5 to 5.7	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.1	8.7	0.93x	6.8 to 9.6	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	2.5	2.7	0.93x	1.8 to 3.4	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	47.2	51.8	0.91x	44 to 50.7	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	128.7	143.2	0.9x	123.3 to 134.4	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	3.3	3.7	0.89x	2.5 to 4.3	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	3.6	4.1	0.88x	2.7 to 4.6	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	11.3	13	0.87x	9.6 to 13.3	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	2.9	3.4	0.85x	2.2 to 3.9	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	25.1	30.2	0.83x	22.7 to 27.6	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	5.3	6.6	0.8x	4.3 to 6.6	2020-2024

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	4,820.1	9,842.6	-51%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	81.3	75.3	+8%	years
Child mortality	33.9	59.8	-43%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	3.9	6.2	-38%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	58.3	96.9	-40%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	13.3	28.6	-54%	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.

Formaldehyde15.9 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.98 per million
Naphthalene2.22 per million
Benzene1.99 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 236 days: 224 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 34, peak 84.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing93
Industrial wastewater discharge67
Gas station (mapped facility)63
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)60
Small hazardous waste generator56
Air permit holder (minor source)55
Brownfield property23
NPDES wastewater discharge permit21
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)18
Solar power plant14
TRI reporting facility12
Hazardous waste transporter10
Large hazardous waste generator9
Major air pollution source5
EPA air quality monitor4
Correctional facility (prison or jail)4
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)4
Large greenhouse gas emitter4
Airfield3
Public airport3
Landfill (mapped facility)2
Scrapyard (mapped facility)2
Superfund (NPL) site2
Coal power plant1
Gas 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.

Cottage Grove - 3m Company, Cottage Grove
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $3,123,859.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423667 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Oakdale Dump, Oakdale
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 55.7. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MND980609515 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Baytown Township Ground Water Plume, Baytown Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 35.6. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MND982425209 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
3m Chemical Operations' Cottage Grove Facility, Cottage Grove
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Sodium nitrite, Toluene, Methanol and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. Reports PFAS. 2,489,775 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55016MCHMLHIGHW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 10
St Paul Park Refining Co Llc, Saint Paul Park
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Hydrogen cyanide, Propylene, Ammonia and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,028,350 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55071SHLND100WT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.1
Andersen Corp, Bayport
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Ethylbenzene, Methyl isobutyl ketone, Manganese And Manganese Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 257,494 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55003NDRSNFOOTO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.7
Xcel Energy A. S. King Generating Plant, Bayport
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Hydrogen fluoride, Barium And Barium Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 104,595 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55003SKNGG1103K (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.4
Cottage Grove - 3m Company, Cottage Grove
Major air pollution source. Penalties $3,123,859.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423667 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Lsp - Cottage Grove Lp, Cottage Grove
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia. 252,416 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55016LSPCT95251 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Inliner Solutions Llc, Hugo
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 1,884 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5503WGRNTN1628F (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7
Cottage Grove - 3m Company, Cottage Grove
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $3,123,859.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423667 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Cottage Grove - 3m Company, Cottage Grove
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $3,123,859.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423667 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Marathon St. Paul Park Refinery, St. Paul Park
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043813816 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.7
Allen S King, Oak Park Heights
Coal power plant.
Record ID 1915 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 6.5
Cottage Grove - 3m Company, Cottage Grove
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $3,123,859.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423667 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Lsp Cottage Grove Cogeneration Facility, Cottage Grove
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423658 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Andersen Corp, Bayport
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423603 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.2
Xcel Energy Allen S King Generating Plant, Bayport
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000423612 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Knife River Corp N Central Forest Lake, Forest Lake
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Lead, Mercury. Reports carcinogens. 72 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5502WKNFRV16211 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.9
Holcim - Mwr Inc. Newport Ready Mix, Newport
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Lead And Lead Compounds, Lead compounds. 1,882 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55055GGRGT5721S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.5
Ayrshire Electronics Mn, Saint Paul
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 5 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55128YRSHR71555 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.1
Aggregate Industries Inc - Newport Plant, Newport
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010292290 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.1
Cemstone Lakeland, Lakeland
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 2 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 55043CMSTN16164 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.9
The Vollrath Co. Llc, Newport
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Chromium, Manganese, Copper. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 5505WTHVLL911HA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Hearing Components, Oakdale
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070260602 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3

Correctional facilities

Prisons, jails and corrections operations with an EPA facility record, and the drinking water and wastewater compliance attached to them.

Minnesota Correctional Facility Oak Park, Oak Park Heights
EPA FRS registry ID
110008689534
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
Mn Correctional Facility - Stillwater
EPA FRS registry ID
110013072619
Water system
MN1820002
Health-based violations
0 all time, 0 in 5 years
All violations
6
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
Minnesota Correctional Facility - Stillwater, Bayport
EPA FRS registry ID
110061806032
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report
Minnesota Correctional Facility - Stillw, Bayport
EPA FRS registry ID
110064193689
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Washington 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 Washington 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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