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Lincoln County, Montana: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Lincoln County is 158.2 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Esophagus deaths at 2 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 196 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (96), Rail grade crossing (48), Gas station (mapped facility) (16). 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: 48.4608, -115.4494.

How this county ranks in Montana

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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 Lincoln County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	Deaths	7.4	3.7	2xSignificant	4 to 13.7	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	9.2	4.6	2xSignificant	4.9 to 16.4	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	12	6.2	1.94x	6.1 to 21.3	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	8	4.4	1.82x	4.4 to 14.4	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	18.3	13	1.41x	10.1 to 30.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	10.3	8.7	1.18x	5.5 to 18.2	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	60.4	51.8	1.17x	49.6 to 73.6	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	26.9	23.8	1.13x	19.2 to 37.4	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	158.2	143.2	1.1x	140.3 to 178.2	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	32.2	30.2	1.07x	24.8 to 42	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	474.7	453.4	1.05x	440.3 to 511.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	18.2	18.5	0.98x	11.5 to 27.8	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	18.2	18.7	0.97x	12.5 to 26.5	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	17	17.9	0.95x	11.4 to 25.4	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	12.1	14.5	0.83x	7.5 to 19.5	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	9.5	13.9	0.68x	5.7 to 16.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	7.7	11.3	0.68x	4.4 to 13.6	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 Lincoln County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,743	9,842.6	-1%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.3	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	67.7	59.8	+13%	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	109.6	96.9	+13%	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.

Formaldehyde12.29 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.7 per million
Acetaldehyde1.79 per million
Naphthalene1.04 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 182 days: 99 good, 2 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 45, peak 118.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit96
Rail grade crossing48
Gas station (mapped facility)16
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)10
Brownfield property5
Landfill (mapped facility)5
Public airport4
Heliport2
Superfund (NPL) site2
EPA air quality monitor1
Airfield1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Hydroelectric plant1
TRI reporting facility1
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)1
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.

Libby Asbestos, Libby
Superfund (NPL) site. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MT0009083840 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Libby Ground Water Contamination, Libby
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 37.7. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MTD980502736 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Us Cbp Roosville Port Of Entry #Mt0008, Eureka
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens. 2,081 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5991WSCBPR7915H (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7
Libby Courthouse Annex, Libby
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 300530018 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 6.7
Town Of Eureka Wwtp, Eureka
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $16,100.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070202780 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Libby Wwtp, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039828130 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Us Cbp Roosville Port Of Entry #Mt0008, Eureka
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055498741 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.2
Wilderness Club, Eureka
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110062656184 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Montana Fwp - Western Mt Multi County Pesticide Permit, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064613967 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Schickedanz Montana Dba Indian Springs Ranch, Eureka
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064644871 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Granite Concrete Products Llc, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070104964 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Lucky Strike Claim, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071710515 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Timberline Ready Mix, Eureka
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055020347 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Troy Gravel Pit, Troy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071376365 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Lincoln County Port Authority Lcpa, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017786298 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Why Not Placer Claim, Troy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064612566 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Libby Creek Suction Dredge, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064618739 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Lower Snipetown Claim, Troy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064635337 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Snipetown Pot, Troy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070500949 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Devil Dog Canyon, Troy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071237580 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Libby Cr. Placer/ 99er & Bent Claims, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017852536 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Au Mco - Mel Peterson, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110020143067 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Snipetown And Snipetown Stonechest Claim, Troy
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039186537 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Mighty Fine Claim, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040080391 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Two Bit Claim, Libby
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046336461 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5

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 Lincoln 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 Lincoln 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.

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