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Lawrence County, South Dakota: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Lawrence County is 124 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2. Federal databases place 160 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (85), Rail grade crossing (25), Gas station (mapped facility) (17). 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: 44.3848, -103.8123.

How this county ranks in South Dakota

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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
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	18.9	18.5	1.02x	13.2 to 26.8	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	18.1	17.9	1.01x	12.3 to 26.1	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	23.7	23.8	1x	16.7 to 33	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	New cases	46.7	51.8	0.9x	37.7 to 57.7	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	26.3	30.2	0.87x	20 to 34.5	2020-2024
All cancer	Deaths	124	143.2	0.87x	109 to 140.8	2020-2024
All cancer	New cases	390.1	453.4	0.86x	361.6 to 420.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	12.3	14.5	0.85x	7.5 to 19.4	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	15.6	18.7	0.83x	10.4 to 22.8	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	9.7	13.9	0.7x	5.8 to 15.6	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	7.7	11.3	0.68x	4.3 to 13.2	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 Lawrence County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	6,602.7	9,842.6	-33%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	79.4	75.3	+6%	years
Child mortality	69	59.8	+15%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	n/a	6.2	n/a	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	77	96.9	-21%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	n/a	28.6	n/a	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.

Formaldehyde11.01 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.62 per million
Acetaldehyde0.82 per million
Pahpom0.57 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit85
Rail grade crossing25
Gas station (mapped facility)17
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)6
Small hazardous waste generator4
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)4
Major air pollution source3
TRI reporting facility3
Air permit holder (minor source)2
Brownfield property2
Landfill (mapped facility)2
Wastewater plant (mapped facility)2
Public airport1
Commercial airport1
Heliport1
Hydroelectric plant1
Superfund (NPL) site1

Highest-severity records

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

Gilt Edge Mine, Lead
Superfund (NPL) site. Hazard Ranking System score 50. NPL Site.
EPA site ID SDD987673985 (U.S. EPA Superfund (SEMS/NPL)) Agency record
Severity 10
Wharf Resources, Lead
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead And Lead Compounds, Lead compounds, Nitrate compounds (water dissociable; reportable only when in aqueous solution), Chromium and 4 more. 9,150,968 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 57754WHRFRTROJA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.3
Wharf Resources (U S A ) Inc, Lead
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000594973 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 7.5
Hills Products Group, Whitewood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper compounds, Arsenic compounds, Chromium compounds (except for chromite ore mined in the Transvaal Region). Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 57793HLLSP1421L (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Wharf Resources (U S A ) Inc, Lead
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000594973 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Hills Products Group, Whitewood
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031001644 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Wheeler Lumber L.L.C., Whitewood
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041992939 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Apple Springs Resort (H2o Clear Solutions Llc), Sturgis
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041922916 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Wharf Resources (U S A ) Inc, Lead
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000594973 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Spearfish Forest Products, Spearfish
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012704680 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Spearfish, City Of (Wtp), Spearfish
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110013002286 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Lead - Deadwood Sanitary District, Deadwood
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039849180 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Polaris Industries, Inc. Spearfish (Former), Spearfish
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067421098 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Golden Reward Mining Co., Lead
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000868106 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Sky Ridge Subdivision, Spearfish
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $5,835.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071319541 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.3
Greenwood Property, Greenwood
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110060855301 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Mclaughlin Sawmill Property, Spearfish
Brownfield property.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071985050 (U.S. EPA Brownfields (ACRES)) Agency record
Severity 3
Lac Minerals (Usa) Llc, Lead
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002041610 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Spearfish Forest Products, Spearfish
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110012704680 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Sd Science And Technology Authority, Lead
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110040054204 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3
Ridley Block Operations, Whitewood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Manganese compounds, Zinc compounds.
TRI facility ID 57793HBBRDPOBOX (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Wheeler Lumber L.L.C., Whitewood
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Copper compounds.
TRI facility ID 57793WHLRC12MIL (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 3
Usfs - Boxelder Jcccc, Nemo
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006887431 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.8
Powder House Pass Cid, Lead
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $30,200.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055488351 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2.5
Wharf Resources (U S A ) Inc, Lead
Small hazardous waste generator.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000594973 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 2

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

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