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Columbus County, North Carolina: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Columbus County is 188.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Melanoma of the skin deaths at 2.6 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.6 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 343 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (146), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (89), Brownfield property (29). 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: 34.2127, -78.6304.

How this county ranks in North Carolina

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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 Columbus County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	5.2	2	2.6xSignificant	2.8 to 8.8	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	48.1	30.2	1.59xSignificant	41.3 to 55.9	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	16.6	11.3	1.47xSignificant	12.6 to 21.6	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	70.2	51.8	1.36xSignificant	62 to 79.4	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	23.6	17.9	1.32xSignificant	18.3 to 30	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	188.4	143.2	1.32xSignificant	174.3 to 203.5	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	30.4	23.8	1.28xSignificant	24.6 to 37.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	17.6	13.9	1.27x	13.5 to 22.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	6	4.8	1.25x	3.7 to 9.4	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	497.7	453.4	1.1xSignificant	473.8 to 522.5	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	13.8	13	1.06x	9.6 to 19.2	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.9	5.7	1.04x	3.8 to 9	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.6	6.6	1x	4.2 to 10.1	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	6.3	6.6	0.95x	3.9 to 9.7	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	17.1	18.5	0.92x	12.9 to 22.3	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	3.9	4.6	0.85x	2.2 to 6.6	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	12.2	14.5	0.84x	8.6 to 16.8	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	6.9	8.7	0.79x	4.4 to 10.3	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	4.9	6.2	0.79x	2.7 to 8.3	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	11	18.7	0.59x	7.8 to 15.3	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 Columbus County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	16,521.4	9,842.6	+68%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	69.7	75.3	-7%	years
Child mortality	91.6	59.8	+53%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	8.6	6.2	+38%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	141.4	96.9	+46%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	54.9	28.6	+92%	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.

Formaldehyde18.01 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.94 per million
Acetaldehyde1.77 per million
Benzene0.72 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing146
NPDES wastewater discharge permit89
Brownfield property29
Air permit holder (minor source)15
Gas station (mapped facility)15
Solar power plant15
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)6
Major air pollution source5
Small hazardous waste generator4
TRI reporting facility4
Public airport3
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)3
Large hazardous waste generator3
Commercial airport1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Biomass power plant1
Superfund (NPL) site1

Highest-severity records

The 25 records with the highest Envyrofax severity in the county, with the agency identifier to cite in a records request.

Bakelite Synthetics, Riegelwood
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $16,349.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000350352 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Wright Chemical Corporation, Riegelwood
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 48. NPL Site.
EPA site ID NCD024766719 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
International Paper Riegelwood Mill, Riegelwood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ammonia, Manganese compounds, Chlorine dioxide and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 14,757,567 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 28456FDRLPRIEGE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 10
Bakelite Synthetics, Riegelwood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ammonia, Formaldehyde, Formic acid. Reports carcinogens. 506,337 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 28456HXNCM333NE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.9
Global Cellulose Fibers - Riegelwood Mill, Riegelwood
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009719304 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.1
Bakelite Synthetics, Riegelwood
Major air pollution source. Penalties $16,349.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000350352 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Bakelite Synthetics, Riegelwood
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $16,349.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000350352 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Bakelite Synthetics, Riegelwood
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $16,349.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000350352 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Town Of Tabor City, Tabor City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,701.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010687328 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
West Fraser Armour Lumber Mill, Riegelwood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol. 122,567 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 28456NTRNT361FE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.9
City Of Whiteville, Whiteville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $9,647.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006367314 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.8
Chadbourn Wwtp, Chadbourn
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $13,363.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030765964 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.8
Maxpro Manufacturing, Whiteville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Toluene. 55,940 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 2847WMXPRM31IND (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.6
Entegris Inc., Riegelwood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane, Methanol, Toluene. 9,999 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 2845WSLRLB333NE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.1
Maxpro Manufacturing, Whiteville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071018225 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.9
Bakelite Synthetics, Riegelwood
Small hazardous waste generator. Penalties $16,349.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000350352 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Lake Waccamaw Wwtp, Lake Waccamaw
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $89,505.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006710906 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Global Cellulose Fibers - Riegelwood Mill, Riegelwood
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009719304 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Acme Delco Elementary School, Riegelwood
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009844295 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Campbell Oil & Gas Co., Whiteville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: n-Hexane, Benzene, Toluene, Methyl tert-butyl ether and 3 more. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 28472CMPBL1476S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Global Cellulose Fibers - Riegelwood Mill, Riegelwood
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009719304 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Campbell Oil & Gas Co., Whiteville
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000350398 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Global Cellulose Fibers - Riegelwood Mill, Riegelwood
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009719304 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
West Fraser, Inc. - Armour Lumber Mill, Riegelwood
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000861620 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Georgia-Pacific Wood Products Llc (Whiteville Nc), Chadbourn
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002441750 (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 Columbus County

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