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Pittsburg County, Oklahoma: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Pittsburg County is 201.7 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Melanoma of the skin deaths at 3 times the U.S. rate and Bladder deaths at 2.4 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 656 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Air permit holder (minor source) (424), Rail grade crossing (92), Gas station (mapped facility) (46). One correctional facility operates in the county. 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: 34.9405, -95.7983.

How this county ranks in Oklahoma

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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 Pittsburg County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	5.9	2	2.95xSignificant	3.3 to 9.9	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	9.7	4.1	2.37xSignificant	6.5 to 14	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	54.9	30.2	1.82xSignificant	47.1 to 63.9	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	7.5	4.6	1.63xSignificant	4.9 to 11.4	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	8.8	5.7	1.54xSignificant	5.9 to 12.8	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	78.7	51.8	1.52xSignificant	69.3 to 89.3	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	201.7	143.2	1.41xSignificant	186.1 to 218.4	2020-2024
Esophagus	Deaths	5.2	3.7	1.41x	3 to 8.5	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	7.8	6.6	1.18x	4.8 to 12	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	5.2	4.4	1.18x	3.1 to 8.6	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	20.5	17.9	1.15x	15.4 to 27	2019-2023
Thyroid	New cases	14.7	13	1.13x	10 to 20.9	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	7.4	6.6	1.12x	4.6 to 11.4	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	5.3	4.8	1.1x	3 to 8.8	2020-2024
Leukemia	New cases	15.8	14.5	1.09x	11.4 to 21.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	12.3	11.3	1.09x	8.8 to 17	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	485.6	453.4	1.07xSignificant	460.1 to 512.2	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	23.5	23.8	0.99x	18.1 to 30.2	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	17.5	18.5	0.95x	12.8 to 23.4	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.2	8.7	0.94x	5.1 to 12.6	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	17.1	18.7	0.91x	12.8 to 22.5	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	5.6	6.2	0.9x	3.1 to 9.5	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	12.1	13.9	0.87x	8.4 to 16.9	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 Pittsburg County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	13,462.4	9,842.6	+37%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	71.3	75.3	-5%	years
Child mortality	72.1	59.8	+21%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	8.1	6.2	+30%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	120.4	96.9	+24%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	26.7	28.6	-7%	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.

Formaldehyde22.54 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.89 per million
Acetaldehyde1.97 per million
Pahpom0.89 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 207 good, 3 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 48, peak 140.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Air permit holder (minor source)424
Rail grade crossing92
Gas station (mapped facility)46
NPDES wastewater discharge permit34
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)13
Major air pollution source8
Brownfield property8
Large hazardous waste generator4
Hazardous waste transporter4
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)4
Large greenhouse gas emitter3
Small hazardous waste generator3
EPA air quality monitor2
TRI reporting facility2
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)2
Public airport1
Commercial airport1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Heliport1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
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.

Us Army Mcalester Army Ammunition Plant, Mcalester
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper, Aluminum (fume or dust), Lead, Lead compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 800,945 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 74501MCLSTHWY69 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9
Ammunition Plant, Mcalester
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000455702 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.8
Eurecat Us, Mcalester
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Molybdenum trioxide, Nickel compounds, Nickel And Nickel Compounds, Cobalt compounds and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 11,792 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 74501TRCTN11TAY (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Eurecat Us, Mc Alester
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $5,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046424552 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.3
McALESTER, McAlester
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 401210415 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 6
Ammunition Plant, Mcalester
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000455702 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Mcalester East Wwtp, Mcalester
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $30,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022609676 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Mcalester, City Of - West Plant, Mcalester
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $37,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110022609738 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Markwest Oklahoma Gas Co Llc / Myer Mountain Compressor Station, Scipio
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110045443472 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Eurecat Us, Mc Alester
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $5,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046424552 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Ammunition Plant, Mcalester
Large hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000455702 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Ammunition Plant, Mcalester
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000455702 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
National Oilwell Varco Mcalester Works, Mcalester
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Chromium, Manganese, Copper. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 74502NTNLLHWY69 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Choctaw Defense Mcalester, Mcalester
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 7450WCHCTW3SKYW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Mcalester Pwa, Mcalester
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110037273321 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Kiamichi Energy Facility, Kiowa
Gas power plant.
Record ID 55501 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4.2
Pittsburg Co Rwd #20 -- Carlton Landing Wwtf, Eufaula
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $28,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070099854 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Kiowa Power Partner - Tenaska Kiamichi Generating Station, Kiowa
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110021355816 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Markwest Oklahoma G/Verner Cmpsr Sta, Mcalester
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031099004 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Markwest Oklahoma G/Newman Cmpsr Sta, Mcalester
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031099013 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Kiowa Wtp, Kiowa
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $1,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071296281 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Pliant Corp/Plastic Film Plt, Mcalester
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001989830 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Quality Finishing, Inc., Mcalester
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110004770285 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Markwest Oklahoma Gas Co Llc / Schwarz Compressor Station, Mcalester
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040506324 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Kiowa Power Partner, Llc, Kiowa
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064620548 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5

Correctional facilities

Prisons, jails and corrections operations with an EPA facility record, and the drinking water and wastewater compliance attached to them.

Brannon Correctional Center, Mcalester
EPA FRS registry ID
110011013928
Wastewater permit
Yes
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Pittsburg County

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