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Cambria County, Pennsylvania: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Cambria County is 159.7 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 1.9 times the U.S. rate and Esophagus deaths at 1.4 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 830 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (326), Rail grade crossing (114), Air permit holder (minor source) (108). One correctional facility operates in the county. 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: 40.486, -78.7326.

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 Cambria County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	3.7	2	1.85xSignificant	2.5 to 5.4	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	22.5	13	1.73xSignificant	18.9 to 26.7	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	5.3	3.7	1.43xSignificant	4.1 to 7	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	6.2	4.4	1.41xSignificant	4.6 to 8.1	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	6.4	4.6	1.39xSignificant	5 to 8.3	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	6.1	4.8	1.27x	4.7 to 7.9	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	20.6	16.4	1.26x	12.7 to 31.5	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	23.4	18.7	1.25xSignificant	20.5 to 26.6	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	16.8	14.5	1.16x	14.1 to 19.8	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	21.4	18.5	1.16x	18.5 to 24.6	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	3.8	3.4	1.12x	2.6 to 5.4	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	159.7	143.2	1.12xSignificant	152 to 167.7	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	15.5	13.9	1.12x	13.2 to 18.3	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	6.9	6.2	1.11x	5.2 to 9.1	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	19.5	17.9	1.09x	16.5 to 22.9	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	487.7	453.4	1.08xSignificant	473.4 to 502.5	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	12.1	11.3	1.07x	10.1 to 14.4	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	31.6	30.2	1.05x	28.3 to 35.2	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	52.5	51.8	1.01x	48.3 to 57.1	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	4.1	4.1	1x	3 to 5.5	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	8.6	8.7	0.99x	6.9 to 10.6	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	4.9	5.7	0.86x	3.7 to 6.6	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	20.3	23.8	0.85x	17.4 to 23.6	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	5.3	6.6	0.8x	4 to 6.9	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	5.1	6.6	0.77x	3.8 to 6.8	2019-2023
Stomach	Deaths	1.9	2.7	0.7x	1.1 to 3.1	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 Cambria County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,678.8	9,842.6	+8%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.6	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	53.3	59.8	-11%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.8	6.2	-7%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	134.4	96.9	+39%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	65	28.6	+127%	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.

Formaldehyde15.31 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.84 per million
Benzene1.38 per million
Acetaldehyde1.38 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 365 days: 272 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 41, peak 115.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit326
Rail grade crossing114
Air permit holder (minor source)108
Small hazardous waste generator74
Brownfield property61
Gas station (mapped facility)44
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)24
Large hazardous waste generator13
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)11
TRI reporting facility9
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)9
Major air pollution source8
Large greenhouse gas emitter6
Hazardous waste transporter4
Wind power plant4
Public airport3
Heliport2
Coal power plant2
Scrapyard (mapped facility)2
EPA air quality monitor1
Commercial airport1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Landfill (mapped facility)1
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.

Colver Green Energy, Colver
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Ammonia, Manganese And Manganese Compounds, Manganese compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 1,411,297 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15927CLVRP141IN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.2
Ebensburg Power Co, Ebensburg
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Barium compounds (except for barium sulfate (CAS No. 7727-43-7)), Barium And Barium Compounds, Manganese And Manganese Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 546,680 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15931BNSBR2840N (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.9
Colver Green Energy, Colver
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001147786 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8
Johnstown Wire Technologies Inc., Johnstown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds, Manganese compounds, Lead, Methanol and 3 more. Reports carcinogens. 36,375 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15906JHNST124LA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8
Ebensburg Power Co/Ebensburg Cogeneration Plt, Ebensburg
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330632 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.6
Johnstown Wire Tech/Johnstown Wire Plt, Johnstown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000746854 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.7
Equitrans Lp/Rager Mtn Laurel Ridge Sta, Johnstown
Major air pollution source. Penalties $5,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110060044571 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
North American Hoganas High Alloys Llc, Johnstown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper, Manganese, Chromium, Nickel and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 215 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15902SCMMT101BR (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.3
Gautier Steel Holdings Inc., Johnstown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nickel compounds, Nickel And Nickel Compounds, Lead compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds. Reports carcinogens. 166 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15907GTRXX119WA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
North Amer Hoganas/Johnstown Plt, Johnstown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330589 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Colver Green Energy, Colver
Coal power plant.
Record ID 10143 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 6.1
Ebensburg Power, Ebensburg
Coal power plant.
Record ID 10603 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 6.1
Ebensburg Wwtp, Ebensburg
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000949895 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Gautier Steel Holdings Inc/Gautier Steel Johnstown, Johnstown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001144066 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.9
Korns Galvanizing Co Inc, Johnstown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330561 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.6
Safety-Kleen Systems Johnstown (Joh), Johnstown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ethylene glycol, Benzo[g,h,i]perylene, Lead, Polycyclic aromatic compounds. Reports carcinogens. 11 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 1590WSFTYK15ALL (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.3
V&S Korns Galvanizing Llc, Johnstown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Zinc compounds. 849 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 15902CCKRN75BRI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.2
Johnstown Wastewater Treatment Plant, Johnstown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000756655 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Colver Green Energy, Colver
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001147786 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
Cambria Somerset Auth, Johnstown
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $2,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110028058232 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5
John Murtha Johnstown/Cambria County, Johnstown
Commercial airport. O.
Record ID JST (FAA / U.S. DOT)
Severity 5
North Amer Hoganas/Johnstown Plt, Johnstown
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330589 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Ebensburg Power Co/Ebensburg Cogeneration Plt, Ebensburg
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000330632 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
W Branch Sew Auth Stp, Northern Cambria
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $8,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010961414 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Johnstown, Johnstown
EPA air quality monitor.
Record ID 420210011 (U.S. EPA AirData)
Severity 4.7

Correctional facilities

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

Federal Corrections Institute Fci Loretto, Loretto
EPA FRS registry ID
110006368153
Wastewater permit
None on record
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Cambria 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 Cambria 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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