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Tompkins County, New York: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Tompkins County is 123.4 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 370 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (141), Rail grade crossing (51), Gas station (mapped facility) (33). 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: 42.4462, -76.4728.

How this county ranks in New York

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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 Tompkins County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	New cases	6.6	4.6	1.43xSignificant	4.7 to 9.1	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	5.3	3.7	1.43x	3.6 to 7.6	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	30.1	23.8	1.26xSignificant	25.5 to 35.3	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	16.8	14.5	1.16x	13.5 to 20.7	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	20	18.7	1.07x	16.5 to 24	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19	18.5	1.03x	15.5 to 23.1	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	463.5	453.4	1.02x	445.4 to 482.1	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	13	13	1x	9.9 to 16.8	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	5.9	6.2	0.95x	3.9 to 8.6	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	10.6	11.3	0.94x	8.1 to 13.7	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	46.5	51.8	0.9x	41.1 to 52.5	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	3.8	4.4	0.86x	2.3 to 5.9	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	123.4	143.2	0.86x	114.4 to 132.9	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	4.1	4.8	0.85x	2.7 to 6.2	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	11.3	13.9	0.81x	8.7 to 14.6	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	24.4	30.2	0.81x	20.6 to 28.8	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	5.3	6.6	0.8x	3.5 to 7.7	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	4.4	5.7	0.77x	2.9 to 6.6	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	13.7	17.9	0.77x	10.8 to 17.3	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	6.6	8.7	0.76x	4.6 to 9.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	4.7	6.6	0.71x	3.1 to 6.8	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	2.8	4.1	0.68x	1.6 to 4.6	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 Tompkins County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	5,563.2	9,842.6	-43%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	80.9	75.3	+8%	years
Child mortality	32.6	59.8	-46%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.2	6.2	-16%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	58.9	96.9	-39%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	25.1	28.6	-12%	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.

Formaldehyde12.93 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.94 per million
Benzene1.6 per million
Acetaldehyde1.35 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 355 days: 331 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 35, peak 74.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit141
Rail grade crossing51
Gas station (mapped facility)33
Small hazardous waste generator32
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)28
Air permit holder (minor source)26
Large hazardous waste generator26
Solar power plant8
Public airport4
TRI reporting facility3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Major air pollution source2
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)2
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)2
EPA air quality monitor1
Commercial airport1
Brownfield property1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Hydroelectric plant1
Gas power plant1
Scrapyard (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.

Ithaca Area Wwtf, Ithaca
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,125.
EPA FRS registry ID 110072172006 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Cayuga Heights (V) Wwtp, Ithaca
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000734821 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Borgwarner Ithaca Llc, Ithaca
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Nickel, Lead, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution) and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 25 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 14850BRGWR800WA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.6
Freeville (V) Wwtp, Freeville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $31,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009826661 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Teets & Son Scrap Metal Llc, Newfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,300.
EPA FRS registry ID 110033203432 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Mirabito Energy Products, Lansing
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,600.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070925159 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Newfield Convenience, Newfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044367896 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Ithaca Tompkins Intl, Ithaca
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID ITH (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 5
Borgwarner Morse Tec Corp, Ithaca
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000328510 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.6
Mpl Inc, Ithaca
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 14850MPLNC41DUT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport, Ithaca
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009150480 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Newfield (T) Sd #1, Newfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009826714 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Cayuga Operating Co Llc, Lansing
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000328547 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Groton (V) Stp, Groton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006702283 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Dryden (V) Stp, Dryden
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009149518 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Mpl Inc, Ithaca
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004568058 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Trumansburg (V) Stp, Trumansburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009829141 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Cayuga Operating Co L.L.C., Lansing
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead And Lead Compounds, Mercury And Mercury Compounds. 15 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 14882SCYGL228MI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3.9
Cargill Inc - Cayuga Mine, Lansing
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000838201 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Egts - Borger Station, Ithaca
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000809448 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Cornell University Main Campus, Ithaca
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110063170795 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Borgwarner Morse Tec Corp, Ithaca
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000328510 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Cayuga Operating Co Llc, Lansing
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000328547 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Newfield Transfer Station, Newfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110019112609 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Cargill Salt, Lansing
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071069769 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3

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 Tompkins County

New York 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 Tompkins County, and their findings.
New York 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 York health department, environmental epidemiology
Health consultations or assessments by ATSDR or the state health department covering the county, and any exposure investigations.
New York 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 York 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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