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Ocean County, New Jersey: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Ocean County is 143.3 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Bladder deaths at 1.2 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.1 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 2,176 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (1,504), Air permit holder (minor source) (180), Gas station (mapped facility) (125). 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: 39.834, -74.2556.

How this county ranks in New Jersey

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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 Ocean County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Thyroid	New cases	22.3	13	1.72xSignificant	20.6 to 24.1	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	27.1	18.7	1.45xSignificant	25.6 to 28.5	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	31.7	23.8	1.33xSignificant	30 to 33.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	19	14.5	1.31xSignificant	17.7 to 20.3	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	8.1	6.2	1.31xSignificant	7.1 to 9.1	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	5.7	4.6	1.24xSignificant	5.1 to 6.5	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	5	4.1	1.22xSignificant	4.4 to 5.6	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	22.5	18.5	1.22xSignificant	21.1 to 24	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	62.4	51.8	1.2xSignificant	60.2 to 64.6	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	537.2	453.4	1.18xSignificant	530.2 to 544.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	16.4	13.9	1.18xSignificant	15.3 to 17.6	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	4.3	3.7	1.16x	3.7 to 4.9	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	4.9	4.4	1.11x	4.2 to 5.7	2020-2024
Leukemia	Deaths	6.1	5.7	1.07x	5.5 to 6.8	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	32.2	30.2	1.07xSignificant	30.7 to 33.8	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	4.9	4.8	1.02x	4.3 to 5.6	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	6.7	6.6	1.02x	6 to 7.6	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	143.3	143.2	1x	140 to 146.7	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	11.3	11.3	1x	10.4 to 12.3	2020-2024
Thyroid	Deaths	0.5	0.5	1x	0.3 to 0.7	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	16	16.4	0.98x	13.2 to 19.3	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	1.9	2	0.95x	1.6 to 2.4	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.2	8.7	0.94x	7.4 to 9.1	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.2	6.6	0.94x	5.5 to 7	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	16.8	17.9	0.94x	15.6 to 18.1	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	2.9	3.4	0.85x	2.5 to 3.5	2020-2024
Stomach	Deaths	2.3	2.7	0.85x	1.9 to 2.8	2020-2024

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 Ocean County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	7,126.8	9,842.6	-28%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	78.1	75.3	+4%	years
Child mortality	30.1	59.8	-50%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	2.9	6.2	-53%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	72.4	96.9	-25%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	35.1	28.6	+23%	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.

Formaldehyde15.44 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride3 per million
Acetaldehyde1.41 per million
Benzene1.36 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 363 days: 286 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 39, peak 154.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

2,176 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

NPDES wastewater discharge permit1,504
Air permit holder (minor source)180
Gas station (mapped facility)125
Small hazardous waste generator94
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)85
Large hazardous waste generator52
Rail grade crossing44
Heliport11
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)10
Major air pollution source9
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)9
Solar power plant8
TRI reporting facility8
Hazardous waste transporter4
Scrapyard (mapped facility)4
Superfund (NPL) site4
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)4
Airfield3
Gas power plant3
EPA air quality monitor2
Public airport2
Commercial airport2
Landfill (mapped facility)2
Oil-fired power plant2
Brownfield property1
Crematorium (mapped facility)1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Battery storage plant1
Biomass 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.

Naval Air Engineering Center, Lakehurst
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50.5. NPL Site.
EPA site ID NJ7170023744 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Ciba-Geigy Corp., Toms River
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50.3. NPL Site.
EPA site ID NJD001502517 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Brick Township Landfill, Brick Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 58.1. NPL Site.
EPA site ID NJD980505176 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Goose Farm, Plumstead Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 47.7. NPL Site.
EPA site ID NJD980530109 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station, Lakehurst
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $101,800.
EPA FRS registry ID 110050961072 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8.4
Ralph Clayton & Sons, Lakewood
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $6,800.
EPA FRS registry ID 110023923263 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8
Nitto Inc., Lakewood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Toluene, Ethylbenzene, Zinc compounds. Reports carcinogens. 25,452 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 08701PRMCL1990R (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Church & Dwight Company Inc., Lakewood
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008054069 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station, Lakehurst
Major air pollution source. Penalties $101,800.
EPA FRS registry ID 110050961072 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Nitto, Inc., Lakewood
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $40,700.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000321839 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.3
Alpha Assoc Inc @ Lakewood Ind Campus, Lakewood
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $17,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004258981 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.1
Ocean Cnty Util Auth Swpcf, West Creek
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004126464 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Clayton Block, Llc, Lakewood
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $140,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110024104002 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station, Lakehurst
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $101,800.
EPA FRS registry ID 110050961072 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station, Lakehurst
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $101,800.
EPA FRS registry ID 110050961072 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Alpha Associates Inc, Lakewood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Toluene, Antimony And Antimony Compounds, Antimony compounds. 54,643 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 08701LPHSS145LE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.6
Ocean Cnty Util Auth Cwpcf, Bayville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001535937 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Ocean Cnty Util Auth Nwpcf, Bricktown
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002375545 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Lakewood Cogeneration, Lakewood
Major air pollution source. Penalties $41,210.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000321811 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.3
Worthington Biochemical Corp, Lakewood
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000805031 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Ocean Cnty Util Auth Cwpcf, Bayville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001535937 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Ocean Cnty Util Auth Nwpcf, Bricktown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002375545 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Church & Dwight Company Inc., Lakewood
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008054069 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Supreme Asset Management & Recovery, Lakewood
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110035837609 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Garden State Yacht Sales, Point Pleasant Beach
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064222853 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6

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 Ocean County

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