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McDowell County, North Carolina: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in McDowell County is 178.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.4 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 243 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (85), Rail grade crossing (68), Gas station (mapped facility) (24). 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: 35.7381, -82.043.

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 McDowell County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	7.8	4.6	1.7xSignificant	5 to 11.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	85.7	51.8	1.65xSignificant	76.3 to 96.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	13.7	8.7	1.57xSignificant	10.1 to 18.5	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	5.7	3.7	1.54x	3.5 to 9	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	6.1	4.1	1.49x	3.8 to 9.6	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	7.1	4.8	1.48x	4.6 to 10.9	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	26.4	17.9	1.47xSignificant	20.7 to 33.3	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	4.9	3.4	1.44x	2.7 to 8.4	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	43.3	30.2	1.43xSignificant	36.8 to 51	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	8.7	6.6	1.32x	5.7 to 12.9	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	31.3	23.8	1.32xSignificant	25 to 38.9	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	8.4	6.6	1.27x	5.6 to 12.4	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	178.7	143.2	1.25xSignificant	164.6 to 193.9	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	22.9	18.7	1.22x	18.1 to 28.8	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	538.1	453.4	1.19xSignificant	512.4 to 565	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	21.1	18.5	1.14x	16.2 to 27.1	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7	6.2	1.13x	4.1 to 11.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	11.5	11.3	1.02x	8.2 to 16	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	14.7	14.5	1.01x	10.5 to 20.3	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.2	5.7	0.91x	2.9 to 8.8	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	12.6	13.9	0.91x	9.1 to 17.2	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	10.3	13	0.79x	6.7 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 McDowell County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,421.9	9,842.6	+6%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.3	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	33.4	59.8	-44%	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	103.7	96.9	+7%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	39.2	28.6	+37%	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.

Formaldehyde18.11 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.82 per million
Acetaldehyde1.73 per million
Benzene0.88 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit85
Rail grade crossing68
Gas station (mapped facility)24
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)22
Air permit holder (minor source)19
Small hazardous waste generator4
Major air pollution source3
Brownfield property3
TRI reporting facility3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Public airport2
Large hazardous waste generator2
Scrapyard (mapped facility)2
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Heliport1
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.

Crane Chempharma & Energy Corp., Marion
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Toluene, Chromium, Nickel. Reports carcinogens. 24,630 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 28752CRNRSOLDRO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Baxter Healthcare Corp, Marion
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018599603 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.9
Corpening Creek Wwtp, Marion
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,922.
EPA FRS registry ID 110028271313 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.8
Baxter International Inc., Marion
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Polycyclic aromatic compounds, Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, Dioxin and dioxin-like compounds. Reports carcinogens. 309 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 28752BXTRHHWY22 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.4
Baxter Healthcare Corp, Marion
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018599603 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Old Fort Wwtp, Old Fort
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009845711 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Baxter Healthcare Corp, Marion
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018599603 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Baxter Healthcare Corp, Marion
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018599603 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Linville Falls Club, Marion
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $774.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006707796 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Dodge Industrial, Marion
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Chromium, Manganese. Reports carcinogens. 5 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 28752DDGRC100RO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.1
Crane Chempharma & Energy Corp. Resistoflex, Marion
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000847665 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Coats American - Sevier Plant, Marion
Major air pollution source. Penalties $2,074.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004015921 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Cedarbrook Residential Center, Nebo
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006673901 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Harmony Estates Mhp Wwtp, Marion
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006707769 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Marion - Nc Rmc, Marion
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022548965 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Janesville Acoustics, Old Fort
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064184653 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Baldor Electric Co, Marion
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000351574 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Coats American - Sevier Plant, Marion
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,074.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004015921 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Crane Chempharma & Energy Corp. Resistoflex, Marion
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000847665 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Columbia Forest Plywood Products, Old Fort
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015681001 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Peavine Rail Line, Marion
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043692411 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Drexel Mill / Drexel Heritage Furniture, Marion
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067660089 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Broyhill Furniture - Ridgewood Plant, Marion
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071973707 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Columbia Forest Plywood Products, Old Fort
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015681001 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Coats American - Sevier Plant, Marion
Small hazardous waste generator. Penalties $2,074.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004015921 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5

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 McDowell 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 McDowell 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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