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Gage County, Nebraska: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Gage County is 170.1 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Leukemia deaths at 1.9 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 271 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Air permit holder (minor source) (101), Rail grade crossing (75), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (24). 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: 40.2624, -96.69.

How this county ranks in Nebraska

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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 Gage County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Leukemia	Deaths	10.6	5.7	1.86xSignificant	6.3 to 17.2	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	23.9	18.7	1.28x	16.9 to 33.2	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	22.1	17.9	1.23x	14.7 to 32.1	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	170.1	143.2	1.19xSignificant	150.4 to 191.9	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	35.2	30.2	1.17x	27 to 45.6	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	12.8	11.3	1.13x	7.7 to 20.5	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	20.2	18.5	1.09x	13.5 to 29.6	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	52.5	51.8	1.01x	42.4 to 64.7	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	414.6	453.4	0.91x	382.1 to 449.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	12.1	13.9	0.87x	7.1 to 19.6	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	11.8	14.5	0.81x	7.2 to 18.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	16.1	23.8	0.68x	10.1 to 24.7	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 Gage County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	7,953.9	9,842.6	-19%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.3	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	56.9	59.8	-5%	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	73.4	96.9	-24%	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.

Formaldehyde16 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.89 per million
Acetaldehyde1.28 per million
Benzene0.69 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 335 days: 254 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 34, peak 131.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Air permit holder (minor source)101
Rail grade crossing75
NPDES wastewater discharge permit24
Brownfield property17
Gas station (mapped facility)17
Small hazardous waste generator8
Major air pollution source7
Large greenhouse gas emitter7
TRI reporting facility4
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)4
Public airport2
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
EPA air quality monitor1
Commercial airport1
Gas 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.

E Energy Adams, Llc, Adams
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030484107 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 9
E Energy Adams, Adams
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Acetaldehyde, n-Hexane, Methanol, Benzene and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 78,380 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 68301NRGYD13238 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.3
Koch Fertilizer Beatrice,Llc, Beatrice
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Methanol, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Zinc compounds and 2 more. 2,991,566 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 68310FRMLN4MIWE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Koch Fertilizer Beatrice Llc, Beatrice
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000596846 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.6
E Energy Adams, Llc, Adams
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030484107 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
E Energy Adams, Llc, Adams
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030484107 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
E Energy Adams, Llc, Adams
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030484107 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
, Beatrice
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 310670005 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 4.6
Koch Fertilizer Beatrice Llc, Beatrice
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000596846 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Accuma Corp, Beatrice
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead, Antimony. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 68310CCMCR2101R (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Beatrice Concrete Co Inc, Beatrice
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 6831WBTRCC23S6T (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Koch Fertilizer Beatrice Llc, Beatrice
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000596846 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Beatrice Wastewater Treatment, Beatrice
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001213696 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Farmers Cooperative, Pickrell
Air permit holder (minor source).
EPA FRS registry ID 110002080738 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Accuma Corp., Beatrice
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110013286808 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Beatrice Concrete Co Inc, Beatrice
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015785462 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Odell Wastewater Treatment Facility, Odell
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008930461 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Store Kraft Manufacturing, Beatrice
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000447730 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Koch Fertilizer Beatrice Llc, Beatrice
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000596846 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Ngpl Compressor Station 106, Beatrice
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006364077 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Exmark Manufacturing Co, Beatrice
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006609250 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Nppd Beatrice Power Station, Beatrice
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012147747 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Adams Washout, Adams
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015973240 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Northern Natural Gas Company, Beatrice
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043793507 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Beatrice, Beatrice
Gas power plant.
Record ID 8000 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3.2

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 Gage County

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