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Bedford County, Pennsylvania: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Bedford County is 147 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 369 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (261), Air permit holder (minor source) (41), Small hazardous waste generator (15). 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: 40.0235, -78.4832.

How this county ranks in Pennsylvania

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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 Bedford County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Thyroid	New cases	33	13	2.54xSignificant	25.7 to 41.6	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	24.9	17.9	1.39xSignificant	19.6 to 31.4	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	8.6	6.2	1.39x	5.2 to 13.3	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	4.4	3.4	1.29x	2.6 to 7.4	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	6	4.8	1.25x	3.7 to 9.4	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	58.9	51.8	1.14x	51.4 to 67.4	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.5	18.5	1.05x	14.8 to 25.3	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.9	5.7	1.04x	3.8 to 9	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	19.3	18.7	1.03x	15.2 to 24.4	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	467.4	453.4	1.03x	443.9 to 492	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	147	143.2	1.03x	135.1 to 159.9	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	30.6	30.2	1.01x	25.4 to 36.8	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	13.7	13.9	0.99x	10.3 to 18.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	11.1	11.3	0.98x	8.2 to 15	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	22.9	23.8	0.96x	17.8 to 29.2	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	13.8	14.5	0.95x	10 to 18.7	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	3.8	4.1	0.93x	2.2 to 6.6	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	4.2	4.6	0.91x	2.4 to 7.2	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	7.9	8.7	0.91x	5.2 to 11.7	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	4	6.6	0.61x	2.2 to 7	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 Bedford County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	9,315.6	9,842.6	-5%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	76.2	75.3	+1%	years
Child mortality	52.2	59.8	-13%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	6	6.2	-3%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	111.4	96.9	+15%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	36.4	28.6	+27%	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.

Formaldehyde15.47 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.88 per million
Acetaldehyde1.47 per million
Benzene1.18 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit261
Air permit holder (minor source)41
Small hazardous waste generator15
TRI reporting facility10
Rail grade crossing9
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)9
Large hazardous waste generator8
Major air pollution source6
Public airport4
Heliport2
Commercial airport1
Brownfield property1
Large greenhouse gas emitter1
Hazardous waste transporter1

Highest-severity records

The 25 records with the highest Envyrofax severity in the county, with the agency identifier to cite in a records request.

Bedford Technical Products Llc, Manns Choice
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Certain glycol ethers, Phenol, Methanol, N,N-Dimethylformamide. Reports carcinogens. 141,737 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15522WSTNGRTS30 (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.5
Creative Pultrusions Inc, Alum Bank
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene, Methyl methacrylate, Diisocyanates, Antimony. Reports carcinogens. 75,123 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15521CRTVPPLEAS (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Bedford Reinforced Plastics Inc, Bedford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene, Decabromodiphenyl oxide. Reports carcinogens. 32,980 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15522BDFRDRD2BO (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Bedford Materials Co/Bedford, Manns Choice
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330044 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.9
Kennametal Bedford Casting Plant, Bedford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Cobalt, Methanol, Copper compounds, Copper. Reports carcinogens. 810 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15522KNNMTRD1CH (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.7
Jlg Industries Inc. - Sunnyside Facility, Bedford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese, Nickel. Reports carcinogens. 222 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 1552WJLGND45SUN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.3
Bedford Reinforced Plastics/Bedford Plt, Bedford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330026 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Creative Pultrusions Bldg No 5 Tower Tech, Alum Bank
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002440261 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Cronimet Specialty Metals Usa Inc, Bedford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel, Cobalt, Chromium. Reports carcinogens. 75 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 1552WCRNMT172FR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.9
Sandy Run Ldfl, Hopewell
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010967347 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Defiance Metal Products Bedford Plant, Bedford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000583182 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.6
Defiance Metal Products, Bedford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese. 1,037 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15522HDSTRSUNNY (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.3
Sandy Run Ldfl, Hopewell
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010967347 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Rex Heat Treat-Bedford Inc, Bedford
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia. 329 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15522RXHTT7CORP (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.9
Jlg Industries, Inc. - Sunnyside Facility, Bedford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070543090 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Sandy Run Ldfl, Hopewell
Large greenhouse gas emitter.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010967347 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Cronimet Specialty Metals Usa Inc - Suite 103, Bedford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070541452 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.6
Rex Heat Treat-Bedford Inc, Bedford
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012708533 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
John Sprung, Greensburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001058694 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Sfs Boyd, Rodney W & Koontz, Richard, Everett
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002450080 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Bunker Hill Rd Srstp, Everett
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010259647 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Sfs Lynch, Bravett B, Artemas
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010966794 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Todd Gorsuch, Everett
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011002538 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Sfs Miller, Michele D, Everett
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110011002645 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Sfs Stup, David & Penny, Clearville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110017695252 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5

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 Bedford County

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