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Freestone County, Texas: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Freestone County is 188 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Lung & bronchus deaths at 1.5 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 181 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by Rail grade crossing (64), NPDES wastewater discharge permit (54), Gas station (mapped facility) (22). 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: 31.7135, -96.158.

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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 Freestone County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	29.3	17.9	1.64xSignificant	20.5 to 40.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	44.4	30.2	1.47xSignificant	34.3 to 57	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	12.4	8.7	1.43x	7.2 to 20.5	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	188	143.2	1.31xSignificant	166 to 212.6	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	67.4	51.8	1.3xSignificant	54.5 to 82.7	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	20.2	18.7	1.08x	13.7 to 29.3	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	487.6	453.4	1.08x	450.5 to 527.1	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	19.1	18.5	1.03x	12.3 to 28.6	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	13.9	14.5	0.96x	8.2 to 22.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	10.6	11.3	0.94x	6 to 17.9	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	12.8	13.9	0.92x	7.4 to 21	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	15.8	23.8	0.66x	9.7 to 24.6	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 Freestone County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,438	9,842.6	+6%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	74.4	75.3	-1%	years
Child mortality	76.4	59.8	+28%	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	96.8	96.9	-0%	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: 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.

Formaldehyde23.92 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.89 per million
Acetaldehyde1.84 per million
Ethylene Oxide1.03 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

Rail grade crossing64
NPDES wastewater discharge permit54
Gas station (mapped facility)22
Major air pollution source14
Air permit holder (minor source)10
TRI reporting facility3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Public airport2
Large greenhouse gas emitter2
EPA air quality monitor1
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)1
Correctional facility (prison or jail)1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
Gas power plant1
Wastewater plant (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.

Arcosa Lws Llc Streetman Tx, Streetman
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Lead compounds, Lead And Lead Compounds, Mercury compounds, Mercury And Mercury Compounds and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 492 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 75859TXPSL2MILE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.6
Big Brown Steam Electric Station & Lignite Mine, Fairfield
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000598988 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Txi Operations Lp, Streetman
TRI reporting facility. Penalties $36,491.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008060187 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Multi-Chem Group Fairfield Tx Facility, Fairfield
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Certain glycol ethers, Ethylene glycol. 10,074 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 7584WMLTCH114WE (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 6.1
Big Brown Steam Electric Station & Lignite Mine, Fairfield
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000598988 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Txi Operations Lp, Streetman
Major air pollution source. Penalties $36,491.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008060187 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
City Of Teague North Wwtp, Teague
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $15,412.
EPA FRS registry ID 110030995065 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.8
Long Industries Buffalo Facility, Buffalo
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070244592 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.4
Txi Operations Lp, Streetman
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $36,491.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008060187 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Freestone Energy Center, Fairfield
Gas power plant.
Record ID 55226 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 4
Sanderson Farms Oakwood Feed Mill, Oakwood
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110067257266 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Txi Operations Lp, Streetman
Large greenhouse gas emitter. Penalties $36,491.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008060187 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
City Of Teague West Wwtp, Teague
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009780031 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
City Of Wortham, Wortham
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110062236110 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Teague Plant, Teague
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007177642 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Teague Township Plant, Teague
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110007196202 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
City Of Streetman Wwtp, Streetman
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $17,500.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009746677 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Dew Central Gathering Facility, Dew
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110015736854 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Freestone Energy Center, Fairfield
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110021138348 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Energy Transfer Fuel Reed Compressor Station, Fairfield
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031207780 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Freestone Field, Donie
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110031505477 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Aker Plant, Streetman
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110033247172 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Buffalo Central Gathering Facility, Dew
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110033530695 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Plum Creek Treating Facility, Buffalo
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110034227192 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Streetman Compressor Station, Streetman
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110037528039 (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.

Boyd Prison Unit Wwtp, Fairfield
EPA FRS registry ID
110017741577
Wastewater permit
Yes, 1 quarters in noncompliance
EPA detailed facility report

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Freestone County

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