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Graham County, North Carolina: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Graham County is 166.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.7 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 29 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (14), Gas station (mapped facility) (7), Air permit holder (minor source) (2). 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: 35.3419, -83.8338.

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 Graham County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	50.4	30.2	1.67xSignificant	35.3 to 71.5	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	78.1	51.8	1.51xSignificant	58.6 to 103.7	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	26.3	18.7	1.41x	15.8 to 43.3	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	166.4	143.2	1.16x	136.2 to 202.5	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	424.5	453.4	0.94x	372.8 to 482.3	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 Graham County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	11,940.5	9,842.6	+21%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.5	75.3	-1%	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	96.6	96.9	-0%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	40.8	28.6	+43%	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.

Formaldehyde15.68 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.72 per million
Acetaldehyde1.42 per million
Benzene0.5 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 245 days: 220 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 41, peak 97.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit14
Gas station (mapped facility)7
Air permit holder (minor source)2
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
Hydroelectric plant2
EPA air quality monitor1
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.

Town Of Fontana Dam Wwtp, Fontana Dam
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,033.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009845640 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Robbinsville Wwtp, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009845418 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Robbinsville Wtp, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006707493 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Tapoco Lodge & Village Wwtp, Tapoco
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009719466 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Santeetlah Powerhouse, Tapoco
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007668363 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.3
Robbinsville Long Creek Water Treatment Plant, Robbinsville
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/1364770649 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Jacob Cornsilk Complex, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070794445 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Oak Valley Hardwoods, Inc. (Robbinsville), Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000351636 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Dehart Lumber Co, Almond
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009857486 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Graham County Recycling Facility, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022553164 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Coldwater Farm, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110035768826 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Crisp & Crisp Waste Site, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071916364 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Spottswood Farm, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071934481 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Yellow Creek Mountain Campground, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072112756 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Robbinsville Elementary School, Robbinsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072143607 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Oak Valley Hardwoods, Inc. (Robbinsville), Robbinsville
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110000351636 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1
Harrison Constr. Apac-Atlantic, Inc. - Massey Branch Quarry, Robbinsville
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110024889520 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1
Styles Body Shop, Robbinsville
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/10793162378 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Sunoco, Robbinsville
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/10793200971 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Crown
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/5797319787 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Outland Gas & Groc, Robbinsville
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/5797323153 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Fontana Village Pitstop, Fontana Dam
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/5797323154 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Fuel Station
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID node/6677808160 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Fuel Station
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/1348091668 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1
Fuel Station, Robbinsville
Gas station (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/606482735 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 1

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 Graham 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 Graham 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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