MT / county FIPS 30021 / county research

Dawson County, Montana: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Dawson County is 152.6 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 151 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (76), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (42), Gas station (mapped facility) (11). 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: 47.326, -104.9258.

How this county ranks in Montana

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 Dawson County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	New cases	57.7	51.8	1.11x	39.7 to 81.8	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	152.6	143.2	1.07x	122.7 to 188.3	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	421.8	453.4	0.93x	369.1 to 480.5	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 Dawson County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,908.9	9,842.6	+1%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.3	75.3	-0%	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	91.8	96.9	-5%	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: 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.

Formaldehyde9.77 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.83 per million
Acetaldehyde0.78 per million
Benzene0.76 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 300 days: 271 good, 3 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 18, peak 165.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing76
NPDES wastewater discharge permit42
Gas station (mapped facility)11
Brownfield property8
Hazardous waste transporter2
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)2
Major air pollution source1
EPA air quality monitor1
Air permit holder (minor source)1
Public airport1
Commercial airport1
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)1
Gas power plant1
Scrapyard (mapped facility)1
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.

Thatcher Company Of North Dakota Inc, Glendive
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064622984 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.3
Thatcher Co Of North Dakota Inc, Glendive
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ethylene glycol, Nonylphenol Ethoxylates, Toluene and 1 more. 4,713 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5933WTHTCH264WT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.8
City Of Glendive Water Resource & Recovery Facility, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002069617 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Denbury Onshore - Gas City Section 28 Tank Battery, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055020329 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Border Steel And Recycling, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055166859 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Thatcher Company Of North Dakota Inc, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064622984 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Fisher Sand And Gravel, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011048696 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
City Of Glendive - Landfill, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011048320 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Knoll'S Ready Mix, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110037966163 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Ms Directional Llc Mpact Downhole Motors, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110062632879 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Mdu - Glendive, Glendive
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041017468 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Glendive, West Glendive
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 300210005 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 3.2
Glendive Gt, Glendive
Gas power plant.
Record ID 2176 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3.1
Realty One, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012354709 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Eastern Plains Event Center, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045401132 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Community Gate, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071966749 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Clough Street Spur Line, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071976747 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Jordan Hotel, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071981593 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Eslick Property, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071982579 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Richey Library And Senior Center, Richey
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071984922 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
El Centro Motel, Glendive
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071985630 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Oaks Disposal Services, Llc, Lindsay
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110056411388 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Ups - Glendive, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $5,300,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110016753574 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Bridger Pipeline - Bridger Poplar Pipeline Yellowstone River Replacement, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $12,500,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110063869988 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Chs Transportation Glendive, Glendive
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004007048 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3

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 Dawson County

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