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Rusk County, Texas: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Rusk County is 176.1 deaths per 100,000 people per year against a U.S. rate of 143.2, a statistically significant excess. The strongest disease signals are Esophagus deaths at 2.1 times the U.S. rate and Bladder deaths at 1.7 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 219 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (91), Rail grade crossing (49), Gas station (mapped facility) (16). EPA AirToxScreen estimates a lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics of 40 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: 32.1259, -94.7871.

How this county ranks in Texas

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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 Rusk County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Esophagus	Deaths	7.6	3.7	2.05xSignificant	4.9 to 11.4	2020-2024
Esophagus	New cases	7.9	4.6	1.72xSignificant	5.2 to 11.7	2019-2023
Bladder	Deaths	7	4.1	1.71xSignificant	4.5 to 10.7	2020-2024
Stomach	New cases	9.7	6.6	1.47x	6.4 to 14.1	2019-2023
Liver & bile duct	New cases	12.7	8.7	1.46xSignificant	9.2 to 17.3	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	Deaths	4.9	3.4	1.44x	2.8 to 8.2	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	42.4	30.2	1.4xSignificant	35.7 to 50	2020-2024
Lung & bronchus	New cases	70.5	51.8	1.36xSignificant	61.8 to 80.1	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	176.1	143.2	1.23xSignificant	161.9 to 191.2	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	Deaths	8	6.6	1.21x	5.3 to 11.7	2020-2024
Leukemia	Deaths	6.1	5.7	1.07x	3.6 to 9.7	2020-2024
Pancreas	New cases	14.6	13.9	1.05x	10.7 to 19.6	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	471	453.4	1.04x	447.5 to 495.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	15	14.5	1.03x	11.1 to 20	2019-2023
Bladder	New cases	19.1	18.7	1.02x	14.7 to 24.5	2019-2023
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	18	17.9	1.01x	13.6 to 23.5	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	18.5	18.5	1x	14 to 24.1	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	10.7	11.3	0.95x	7.5 to 15	2020-2024
Thyroid	New cases	10.6	13	0.82x	7.1 to 15.3	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	11.5	23.8	0.48x	8.1 to 16	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 Rusk County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	10,561.1	9,842.6	+7%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	73.6	75.3	-2%	years
Child mortality	66.7	59.8	+12%	deaths under age 18 per 100,000
Infant mortality	5	6.2	-20%	deaths under age 1 per 1,000 live births
Injury deaths	92.5	96.9	-5%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	9.4	28.6	-67%	deaths per 100,000

Air toxics and air quality

EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 40 in a million. EPA treats 100 in a million as the upper end of acceptable risk and 1 in a million as the goal.

Formaldehyde27.1 per million
Benzidine3.57 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.9 per million
Acetaldehyde2.32 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit91
Rail grade crossing49
Gas station (mapped facility)16
Major air pollution source13
Air permit holder (minor source)11
Hazardous waste transporter7
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)7
Small hazardous waste generator5
TRI reporting facility5
Large greenhouse gas emitter3
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)2
Heliport2
EPA air quality monitor1
Public airport1
Commercial airport1
Brownfield property1
Dry cleaner (mapped facility)1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Coal power plant1
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.

Martin Lake Steam Electric Station & Lignite Mine, Tatum
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Barium compounds (except for barium sulfate (CAS No. 7727-43-7)), Hydrogen fluoride, Barium And Barium Compounds, Manganese compounds and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 9,029,402 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 75691MRTNL8850F (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.8
Martin Lake Electrical Station, Tatum
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043787220 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 9
General Shale Brick Inc. - Plant 45, Henderson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Hydrochloric acid (acid aerosols including mists, vapors, gas, fog, and other airborne forms of any particle size), Hydrogen fluoride, Lead, Manganese compounds and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 240,917 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 75652HNDRS1309K (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.6
Mansfield Plumbing Products Llc, Henderson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 61,622 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 75652FBRGL1505I (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Martin Lake, Tatum
Coal power plant.
Record ID 6146 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 8
Fiberglass Specialties Inc, Henderson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene. Reports carcinogens. 10,564 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 75652FBRGL500AU (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Baker Petrolite Kilgore Blend Plant, Kilgore
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Xylene (mixed isomers), Methanol, Toluene, Ethylbenzene and 4 more. Reports carcinogens. 2,360 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 75662BKRPT806PA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.1
Permian Tank & Manufacturing Inc, Kilgore
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110024420624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.5
Meridian Brick Henderson Facility, Henderson
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000458317 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Permian Tank & Manufacturing Inc, Kilgore
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110024420624 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6
Sadler'S Smokehouse Llc, Henderson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Ammonia. 5,188 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 7565WSBBQP126NF (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 5.9
Mansfield Plumbing Products, Henderson
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000458291 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Martin Lake Electrical Station, Tatum
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043787220 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
City Of Overton Wwtp, Overton
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $66,875.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009774235 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Oak Hill Lignite Mining Area, Henderson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110034210084 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Martin Lake Electrical Station, Tatum
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110043787220 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Southside Wtp, Henderson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071155506 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.3
Baker Petrolite Corporation - Kilgore Blend Plant, Kilgore
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110000458344 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.7
City Of Tatum, Tatum
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009781637 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
City Of Mount Enterprise Wwtp, Mount Enterprise
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010920726 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Trinity Asphalt Inc. - Henderson, Henderson
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Benzo[g,h,i]perylene, Lead, Polycyclic aromatic compounds. Reports carcinogens.
TRI facility ID 7565WTRNTY8621B (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 4.5
Henderson Wastewater Treatment Plant, Henderson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $23,437.
EPA FRS registry ID 110002348889 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Northside Wwtf, Henderson
NPDES wastewater discharge permit. Penalties $26,000.
EPA FRS registry ID 110064603255 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Trinity Asphalt, Inc., Henderson
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070232573 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Tenaska Gateway Generating Station, Mt. Enterprise
Gas power plant.
Record ID 55132 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)
Severity 3.8

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 Rusk 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 Rusk 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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