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Hitchcock County, Nebraska: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Hitchcock County is 200.9 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 2.3 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 107 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (70), Air permit holder (minor source) (20), Public airport (4). 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: 40.1765, -101.0431.

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 Hitchcock County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	68.1	30.2	2.25xSignificant	39.5 to 116.7	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	200.9	143.2	1.4xSignificant	145 to 276	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	68	51.8	1.31x	39.3 to 117.1	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	571.1	453.4	1.26xSignificant	462.4 to 700.5	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 Hitchcock County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	7,454.6	9,842.6	-24%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	75.6	75.3	+0%	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	81.3	96.9	-16%	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.

Formaldehyde11.2 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.74 per million
Acetaldehyde0.75 per million
Benzene0.43 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing70
Air permit holder (minor source)20
Public airport4
Gas station (mapped facility)4
NPDES wastewater discharge permit3
TRI reporting facility2
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)2
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
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.

Trenton Agri Products Llc, Trenton
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Acetaldehyde, n-Hexane, Acrolein, Cyclohexane and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 67,137 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 69044TRNTNHC2PB (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Kugler Oil Co - Cdf, Culbertson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Methanol, Formaldehyde. Reports carcinogens. 2,687 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 6902WKGLRC71748 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Trenton Agri Products, Trenton
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070492012 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.9
Kugler Co Fertilizer Plant, Culbertson
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018874262 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.4
Trenton Agri Products, Trenton
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070492012 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Wastewater Plant
Wastewater plant (mapped facility). Mapped facility presence only; no compliance or exposure measurements.
Record ID way/880400802 (OpenStreetMap contributors) Agency record
Severity 2
Kugler Oil Co Fertilizer Plant, Culbertson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007125770 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.8
Kugler Co Fertilizer Plant, Culbertson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110018874262 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Trenton Agri Products, Trenton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070492012 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 1.5
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077592C (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077594R (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077595X (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077597L (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077598T (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Culbertson Grain, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077599A (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Tate Ave, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077600S (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Co Rd, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077601Y (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077602F (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077604U (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Culbertson
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077605B (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Co Rd, Trenton
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077606H (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Co Rd, Trenton
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077608W (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Co Rd 367, Trenton
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077609D (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Private, Trenton
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077611E (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3
Commercial St, Trenton
Rail grade crossing.
Record ID 077614A (Federal Railroad Administration)
Severity 1.3

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 Hitchcock 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 Hitchcock 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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