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Lawrence County, Ohio: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Lawrence County is 229.2 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Kidney & renal pelvis deaths at 2.3 times the U.S. rate and Lung & bronchus deaths at 2.1 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 161 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (27), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (27), Gas station (mapped facility) (25). 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: 38.6281, -82.5579.

How this county ranks in Ohio

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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 Lawrence County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	7.8	3.4	2.29xSignificant	5.3 to 11.3	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	64.5	30.2	2.14xSignificant	57 to 72.9	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	7.9	3.7	2.14xSignificant	5.2 to 11.5	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	92.8	51.8	1.79xSignificant	83.7 to 102.6	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	8.1	4.6	1.76xSignificant	5.5 to 11.7	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	7	4.1	1.71xSignificant	4.6 to 10.3	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	229.2	143.2	1.6xSignificant	214.3 to 245	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	25.3	17.9	1.41xSignificant	20.3 to 31.2	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	18.1	13	1.39xSignificant	13.4 to 24	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	32.7	23.8	1.37xSignificant	26.7 to 39.7	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	6.4	4.8	1.33x	4.2 to 9.7	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	24.2	18.5	1.31xSignificant	19.3 to 30	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	18.4	14.5	1.27x	14.2 to 23.6	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	14.3	11.3	1.27x	10.8 to 18.7	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	572.1	453.4	1.26xSignificant	547.9 to 597.2	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.5	4.4	1.25x	3.3 to 8.8	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7.4	6.2	1.19x	4.7 to 11.1	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	21.5	18.7	1.15x	17.1 to 26.7	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.8	8.7	1.13x	7 to 13.5	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	6.7	6.6	1.02x	4.4 to 10	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	13.8	13.9	0.99x	10.3 to 18.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.6	5.7	0.98x	3.4 to 8.8	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	6	6.6	0.91x	3.8 to 9.2	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 Lawrence County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	15,073.6	9,842.6	+53%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	70	75.3	-7%	years
Child mortality	67.6	59.8	+13%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.7	6.2	-8%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	146	96.9	+51%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	82	28.6	+187%	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.

Formaldehyde20.86 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.93 per million
Acetaldehyde2.22 per million
Nickel Compounds1.48 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 259 good, 0 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 42, peak 90.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing27
NPDES wastewater discharge permit27
Gas station (mapped facility)25
Small hazardous waste generator20
Brownfield property19
Air permit holder (minor source)17
Major air pollution source5
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)4
Superfund (NPL) site3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
EPA air quality monitor2
Large hazardous waste generator2
TRI reporting facility2
Commercial airport1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Industrial wastewater discharge1
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.

Allied Chemical & Ironton Coke, Ironton
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 47.1. NPL Site.
EPA site ID OHD043730217 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
South Point Plant, South Point
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 46.3. NPL Site.
EPA site ID OHD071650592 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
E.H. Schilling Landfill, Hamilton Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 34.6. NPL Site.
EPA site ID OHD980509947 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Americas Styrenics Llc - Hanging Rock, Ironton
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene, Ethylbenzene, Zinc compounds. Reports carcinogens. 13,670 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4563WMRCSS925CU (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.7
Superior Marine Ways - South Point, South Point
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044261839 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Superior Marine Ways - South Point, South Point
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044261839 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Duke Energy Hanging Rock Ii Llc, Ironton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110054601775 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Dow Chemical Company - Ironton, Ohio Branch, Ironton
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046575773 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
South Point Village, South Point
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002452042 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Vertiv Corp, Ironton
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Nickel, Chromium, Copper. Reports carcinogens. 24 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 45638LBRTC3040S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.6
Ironton Wwtp, Ironton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039783115 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
ODOT Ironton, Ironton
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 390870012 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 5.1
Mcginnis, Inc. - Sheridan Shipyard/Marine Ways (0744000168), South Point
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039084497 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Crown City Wwtp, Crown City
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045506341 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Mcginnis Inc., South Point
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: m-Xylene. 60 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 4568WMCGNN74CUN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.4
Hanging Rock Energy Facility, Ironton
Gas power plant.
Record ID 55736 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4.4
Vertiv Corporation, Ironton
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004723103 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
City Of Ironton Water Treatment Plant, Ironton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000539640 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Coal Grove-Coal Grove, Coal Grove
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006205515 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Hecla Water Association Coal Grove, Proctorville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008619281 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Dow Chemical Company - Ironton, Ohio Branch, Ironton
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046575773 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Aqua Ohio - Union Rome Wwtp, Chesapeake
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064594782 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Hanging Rock Power Company, Llc, Ironton
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110044905216 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Superior Marine Ways Inc - Proctorville (0744000186), Proctorville
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070029138 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Dow Chemical Company - Ironton, Ohio Branch, Ironton
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046575773 (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 Lawrence County

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