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Lehigh County, Pennsylvania: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Lehigh County is 145.9 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. The strongest disease signals are Pancreas deaths at 1.2 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 1,762 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (658), Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility) (297), Air permit holder (minor source) (168). 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: 40.602, -75.5825.

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 Lehigh County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Thyroid	New cases	21.7	13	1.67xSignificant	19.7 to 23.9	2019-2023
Esophagus	New cases	6.7	4.6	1.46xSignificant	5.7 to 7.9	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	24.5	18.7	1.31xSignificant	22.6 to 26.6	2019-2023
Brain & nervous system	New cases	7.4	6.2	1.19x	6.2 to 8.7	2019-2023
Esophagus	Deaths	4.4	3.7	1.19x	3.6 to 5.3	2020-2024
Pancreas	Deaths	13.1	11.3	1.16xSignificant	11.7 to 14.6	2020-2024
Childhood cancer (under 15)	New cases	18.8	16.4	1.15x	14.5 to 23.9	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	9.9	8.7	1.14x	8.7 to 11.2	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	515	453.4	1.14xSignificant	505.7 to 524.4	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	16.4	14.5	1.13xSignificant	14.8 to 18.2	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	15.2	13.9	1.09x	13.7 to 16.9	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	7.2	6.6	1.09x	6.2 to 8.3	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	7.2	6.6	1.09x	6.1 to 8.4	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	56.4	51.8	1.09xSignificant	53.4 to 59.4	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.2	18.5	1.04x	17.5 to 21.1	2019-2023
Leukemia	Deaths	5.9	5.7	1.04x	4.9 to 7	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	145.9	143.2	1.02x	141.2 to 150.9	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	18	17.9	1.01x	16.3 to 19.9	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	29.3	30.2	0.97x	27.2 to 31.5	2020-2024
Bladder	Deaths	3.9	4.1	0.95x	3.1 to 4.7	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	Deaths	1.8	2	0.9x	1.3 to 2.5	2020-2024
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Deaths	4.3	4.8	0.9x	3.5 to 5.2	2020-2024
Brain & nervous system	Deaths	3.9	4.4	0.89x	3.1 to 4.8	2020-2024
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	20.8	23.8	0.87x	18.9 to 22.7	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	2.9	3.4	0.85x	2.2 to 3.6	2020-2024
Stomach	Deaths	2.1	2.7	0.78x	1.5 to 2.8	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 Lehigh County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	7,047.9	9,842.6	-28%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	78	75.3	+4%	years
Child mortality	41.8	59.8	-30%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5.9	6.2	-6%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	92.1	96.9	-5%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	35	28.6	+22%	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.

Formaldehyde19.05 per million
Ethylene Oxide3.01 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.97 per million
Benzene2.26 per million

EPA Air Quality Index 2025

Monitored on 361 days: 260 good, 1 unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. Median AQI 41, peak 115.

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

1,762 active records inside the county from EPA ECHO, TRI, Superfund, Brownfields, NPDES, EIA, FAA, FRA and corrections data.

NPDES wastewater discharge permit658
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)297
Air permit holder (minor source)168
Small hazardous waste generator168
Gas station (mapped facility)137
Rail grade crossing114
Brownfield property49
Large hazardous waste generator33
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)27
Scrapyard (mapped facility)21
TRI reporting facility21
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)16
Hazardous waste transporter14
Major air pollution source9
Heliport9
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)7
Superfund (NPL) site3
Public airport2
Commercial airport2
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
EPA air quality monitor1
Crematorium (mapped facility)1
Industrial wastewater discharge1
Oil-fired power plant1
Solar 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.

Amrize Cement Inc/Whitehall Plt, Whitehall
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $771,025.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000334923 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 10
Novak Sanitary Landfill, South Whitehall Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 42.3. NPL Site.
EPA site ID PAD079160842 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Heleva Landfill, North Whitehall Township
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50.2. NPL Site.
EPA site ID PAD980537716 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Rodale Manufacturing Co., Inc., Emmaus Borough
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. NPL Site.
EPA site ID PAD981033285 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Nestle Purina Petcare Co, Allentown
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $29,458.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000334638 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 9.3
Geo Specialty Chemicals Trimet Products Group, Allentown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Formaldehyde, Methanol, Propionaldehyde and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 374,345 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18104PTMNMNORTH (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.8
Holcim (Us) Inc. - Whitehall Plant, Whitehall
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia, Manganese compounds, Chromium, Lead And Lead Compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 372,604 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18052LFRGC5160M (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.8
Nestle Purina Petcare Co, Allentown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Zinc compounds, Polycyclic aromatic compounds. Reports carcinogens. 364,847 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18001LPPTFROUTE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.8
Apollo Metals Ltd, Bethlehem
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $1,343.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000499513 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 8
Tri-City Marble Llc, Allentown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 27,964 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18104TRCTY4980S (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.9
Vorteq Coil Finishers Llc/Allentown, Allentown
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $349,658.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000335209 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.6
Victaulic Co - Alburtis Facility, Alburtis
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Aluminum (fume or dust), Nickel compounds, Nickel And Nickel Compounds, Lead compounds and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 8,625 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18011VCTLC8023Q (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.5
Amrize Cement Inc/Whitehall Plt, Whitehall
Major air pollution source. Penalties $771,025.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000334923 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
B. Braun Us Device Manufacturing Llc, Allentown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ethylene oxide, Ethylene glycol. Reports carcinogens. 3,625 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18018BRRNM824TW (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Carpenter Co, Fogelsville
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Toluene diisocyanate (mixed isomers), Diisocyanates. Reports carcinogens. 3,029 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18051CRPNTSNOWD (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.2
Amrize Cement Inc/Whitehall Plt, Whitehall
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $771,025.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000334923 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
Apollo Metals Ltd, Bethlehem
Large hazardous waste generator. Penalties $1,343.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000499513 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7
B Braun Med Allentown Fac, Allentown
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000334745 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.7
Bridesburg Foundry Co, Whitehall
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper, Lead compounds, Nickel. Reports carcinogens. 437 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18052BRDSBFRONT (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.5
Amrize Cement Inc/Whitehall Plt, Whitehall
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $771,025.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000334923 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
American Craft Brewery Llc/Breinigsville, Breinigsville
Major air pollution source. Penalties $64,390.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000562980 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Metem - A Ge Vernova Business, Allentown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Nitric acid, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Nickel, Cobalt and 1 more. Reports carcinogens. 163 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18109MPRDC44UNI (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.2
American Craft Brewery Llc/Breinigsville, Breinigsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $64,390.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000562980 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Upper Saucon Twp Stp, Center Valley
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039693409 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Penn Foam Corp, Allentown
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Toluene diisocyanate (mixed isomers). Reports carcinogens. 83 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 18103PNNFM2625M (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6

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 Lehigh 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 Lehigh 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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