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Yellowstone County, Montana: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Yellowstone County is 146.6 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 909 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (313), Rail grade crossing (216), Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility) (80). 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: 45.9798, -108.3607.

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 Yellowstone County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Brain & nervous system	New cases	8.7	6.2	1.4xSignificant	6.9 to 11	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	19.4	14.5	1.34xSignificant	16.7 to 22.4	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.8	4.4	1.32x	4.4 to 7.7	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	19.5	16.4	1.19x	13.3 to 27.8	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	4.3	3.7	1.16x	3.1 to 5.7	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	21.4	18.7	1.14x	18.7 to 24.4	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	14.6	13	1.12x	12.1 to 17.4	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	2.2	2	1.1x	1.4 to 3.4	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	3.7	3.4	1.09x	2.6 to 5.1	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	5	4.6	1.09x	3.7 to 6.5	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	25.7	23.8	1.08x	22.6 to 29.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	15	13.9	1.08x	12.7 to 17.6	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	12.1	11.3	1.07x	10.1 to 14.3	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	478.4	453.4	1.06xSignificant	464.9 to 492.2	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5	4.8	1.04x	3.7 to 6.6	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	146.6	143.2	1.02x	139.4 to 154.1	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.7	6.6	1.02x	5.3 to 8.5	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	17.3	17.9	0.97x	14.8 to 20.1	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.2	8.7	0.94x	6.5 to 10.2	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	16.9	18.5	0.91x	14.4 to 19.7	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.1	5.7	0.89x	3.8 to 6.7	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	3.6	4.1	0.88x	2.6 to 5	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	45.3	51.8	0.87x	41.4 to 49.5	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	26.3	30.2	0.87x	23.4 to 29.5	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	5.4	6.6	0.82x	4.1 to 7.1	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	2	2.7	0.74x	1.2 to 3.1	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 Yellowstone County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,697.6	9,842.6	-1%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.9	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	61.7	59.8	+3%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.5	6.2	-11%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	107.3	96.9	+11%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	24.2	28.6	-15%	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.

Formaldehyde11.88 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.71 per million
Naphthalene2.07 per million
Acetaldehyde1.41 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 315 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 38, peak 91.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit313
Rail grade crossing216
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)80
Brownfield property78
Gas station (mapped facility)73
Small hazardous waste generator24
Scrapyard (mapped facility)18
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)18
Air permit holder (minor source)15
TRI reporting facility13
Public airport12
Major air pollution source10
Hazardous waste transporter8
Large greenhouse gas emitter6
Large hazardous waste generator6
Heliport4
EPA air quality monitor2
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)2
Superfund (NPL) site2
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)2
Airfield1
Commercial airport1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
Coal power plant1
Other power plant1
Oil-fired power plant1
Wind 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.

Western Sugar Cooperative, Billings
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $72,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000428485 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Chs Inc Laurel Refinery, Laurel
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $240,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000595124 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Lockwood Solvent Ground Water Plume, Billings
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 45.7. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MT0007623052 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Billings PCE, Billings
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. NPL Site.
EPA site ID MTD986073252 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Chs Inc. Laurel Refinery, Laurel
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Propylene and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 838,858 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59044CNXRF803HI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9
Par Montana Billings Refinery, Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Sulfuric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), n-Hexane, Diethanolamine, Ethylene and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 726,040 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59101XXNBL700EX (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9
Phillips 66 Co Billings Refinery, Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Toluene, Xylene (mixed isomers), n-Hexane, Propylene and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 412,400 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59101CNCBL401SO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.8
Par Montana, Llc - Billings Refinery, Billings
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000428421 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.6
Montana Sulphur & Chemical Co, Billings
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000428476 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.5
Lfm Laurel West, Laurel
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 39,345 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5904WLFMLR119SW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Lfm Laurel East, Laurel
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 24,891 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 5904WLFMLR122ER (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Western Sugar Cooperative, Billings
Major air pollution source. Penalties $72,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000428485 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Chs Inc Laurel Refinery, Laurel
Major air pollution source. Penalties $240,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000595124 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Jupiter Sulphur Llc, Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Hydrogen sulfide, Sulfuric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Carbonyl sulfide and 1 more. 568,578 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59106KRLYG22077 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.4
Western Sugar Cooperative.130130, Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Barium And Barium Compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds. 498,505 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59107WSTRN3020S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.4
Jtl Group Billings (Dba - Knife River Billings), Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Polycyclic aromatic compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds. Reports carcinogens. 2,119 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59106JTLGR414HE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Western Sugar Cooperative, Billings
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $72,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000428485 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Chs Inc Laurel Refinery, Laurel
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $240,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000595124 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Chs Inc Laurel Refinery, Laurel
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $240,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000595124 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Ups - Billings, Billings
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $5,300,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017358465 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Loveland Products Inc-Billings (Formerly Transbas), Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Dimethylamine, 2,4-D, Dicamba, Naphthalene and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,640 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59101TRNSB1525L (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7
Montana Sulphur & Chemical Co, Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrogen sulfide, Carbon disulfide, Carbonyl sulfide. 79,730 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59107MNTNSEXXON (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.8
Knife River Billings East Site, Billings
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Polycyclic aromatic compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds, Lead compounds and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 669 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 59105KNFRV1927D (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.7
Jupiter Sulphur, Llc. - Billings, Billings
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011048428 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.6
Western Sugar Cooperative, Billings
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $72,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000428485 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5

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 Yellowstone 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 Yellowstone 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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