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Howell County, Missouri: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Howell County is 197.4 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 2 times the U.S. rate and Non-Hodgkin lymphoma deaths at 1.7 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 230 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (86), Air permit holder (minor source) (34), Rail grade crossing (30). 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: 36.7824, -91.8936.

How this county ranks in Missouri

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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 Howell County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	Deaths	7.3	3.7	1.97xSignificant	4.5 to 11.5	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	8.1	4.8	1.69xSignificant	5.2 to 12.3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	49.4	30.2	1.64xSignificant	41.5 to 58.5	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	6.6	4.4	1.5x	3.6 to 11.1	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	5.8	4.1	1.41x	3.4 to 9.5	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	72.5	51.8	1.4xSignificant	62.9 to 83.3	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	6.4	4.6	1.39x	3.8 to 10.3	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	197.4	143.2	1.38xSignificant	181.2 to 214.8	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	14	11.3	1.24x	10.1 to 19.2	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	22.1	17.9	1.23x	16.6 to 28.9	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	7	5.7	1.23x	4 to 11.4	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	7.6	6.6	1.15x	4.6 to 11.8	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19	18.5	1.03x	14.2 to 25.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.9	8.7	1.02x	5.7 to 13.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	14.2	13.9	1.02x	10.2 to 19.6	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	461.9	453.4	1.02x	435.8 to 489.2	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	14.7	14.5	1.01x	10.3 to 20.5	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	18.2	18.7	0.97x	13.7 to 24	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	18	23.8	0.76x	13 to 24.3	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	8.8	13	0.68x	5.1 to 14	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 Howell County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	11,728.4	9,842.6	+19%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	72.6	75.3	-4%	years
Child mortality	94.9	59.8	+59%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	8.3	6.2	+34%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	98.5	96.9	+2%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	10.8	28.6	-62%	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.

Formaldehyde20.11 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.89 per million
Acetaldehyde1.98 per million
Pahpom0.83 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit86
Air permit holder (minor source)34
Rail grade crossing30
Gas station (mapped facility)22
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)12
Industrial wastewater discharge12
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)7
TRI reporting facility5
Major air pollution source4
Small hazardous waste generator4
Brownfield property3
Heliport3
Commercial airport2
Large hazardous waste generator2
Public airport1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Gas power plant1
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.

Royal Oak Enterprises - Brandsville, Brandsville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol. 6,994 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 65688GRNTT114CU (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6
Royal Oak Enterprises-Mtview, Mountain View
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol. 3,806 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 65548RYLKN9916C (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.7
Garnett Wood Products Charcoal Plant, Brandsville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007098880 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.4
Royal Oak Charcoal-Mountain View Kilns, Mountain View
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018000009 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.1
Ahf Products, West Plains
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds. 538 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 65775BRCHR508TH (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.1
West Plains Pws-West Plains Treatment Plt, West Plains
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007644932 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Pace Construction Co West Plains Plant, West Plains
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Polycyclic aromatic compounds, Benzo[g,h,i]perylene. Reports carcinogens. 3 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 6577WPCCNS2516C (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.9
High Performance Hose Facility, Pomona
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ethylene thiourea, Zinc compounds. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 65789HGHPR4225O (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Ahf, Llc Dba Ahf Products, West Plains
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000444797 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.4
Pace Construction - Doss & Harper Quarry, West Plains
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110042748391 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Caterpillar, Inc., Pomona
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011087849 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Drs Sustainment Systems Inc. West Plains, West Plains
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012607633 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Garnett Wood Products Charcoal Plant, Brandsville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007098880 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Ahf, Llc Dba Ahf Products, West Plains
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000444797 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Ozarks Healthcare, West Plains
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001461748 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Drs Sustainment Systems Inc. West Plains, West Plains
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012607633 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Drs Sustainment Systems Inc. West Plains, West Plains
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012607633 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Royal Oak Charcoal-Mountain View Kilns, Mountain View
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018000009 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Garnett Wood Products Charcoal Plant, Brandsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007098880 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
City Of West Plains Power Station, West Plains
Gas power plant.
Record ID 59664 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3
Willow Springs Community Foundation, Willow Springs
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038753738 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Wscf Building Site, Willow Springs
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110038753881 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
D.W. Reese School, West Plains
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040821643 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Ahf, Llc Dba Ahf Products, West Plains
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000444797 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Henrys Mhp, West Plains
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012962543 (U.S. EPA ECHO) 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 Howell County

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