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Lewis County, West Virginia: environmental and disease records

Cancer mortality in Lewis County is 213.6 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 1.7 times the U.S. rate. Federal databases place 370 regulated facilities, sites and hazards inside the county, led by NPDES wastewater discharge permit (267), Rail grade crossing (35), Gas station (mapped facility) (17). 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: 38.9451, -80.4935.

How this county ranks in West Virginia

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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 Lewis County compared with the United States
Cancer	Measure	County rate	U.S. rate	Times U.S.	95% interval	Years
Lung & bronchus	New cases	91.5	51.8	1.77xSignificant	75.5 to 110.5	2019-2023
Leukemia	New cases	24.7	14.5	1.7xSignificant	15.9 to 36.8	2019-2023
Lung & bronchus	Deaths	50	30.2	1.66xSignificant	38.7 to 64.3	2020-2024
Kidney & renal pelvis	New cases	28.1	17.9	1.57xSignificant	18.6 to 41.1	2019-2023
All cancer	Deaths	213.6	143.2	1.49xSignificant	188.2 to 242	2020-2024
Liver & bile duct	New cases	12.9	8.7	1.48x	7.4 to 21.7	2019-2023
All cancer	New cases	555.1	453.4	1.22xSignificant	512.4 to 600.8	2019-2023
Pancreas	New cases	16.8	13.9	1.21x	10.4 to 26.4	2019-2023
Pancreas	Deaths	12.1	11.3	1.07x	6.9 to 20.6	2020-2024
Bladder	New cases	18.4	18.7	0.98x	11.9 to 27.9	2019-2023
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	New cases	17.6	18.5	0.95x	10.8 to 27.8	2019-2023
Melanoma of the skin	New cases	20.1	23.8	0.84x	12.7 to 30.8	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 Lewis County
Measure	County	U.S. median	Difference	Unit
Premature death	14,631.7	9,842.6	+49%	years of life lost before age 75 per 100,000
Life expectancy	70.3	75.3	-7%	years
Child mortality	n/a	59.8	n/a	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	142.5	96.9	+47%	deaths per 100,000
Drug overdose deaths	50.5	28.6	+77%	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.

Formaldehyde16.74 per million
Carbon Tetrachloride2.88 per million
Benzene2.07 per million
Acetaldehyde1.62 per million

EPA Air Quality Index

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

Regulated facilities, sites and hazards by type

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

NPDES wastewater discharge permit267
Rail grade crossing35
Gas station (mapped facility)17
Air permit holder (minor source)14
Brownfield property14
Small hazardous waste generator7
Major air pollution source5
TRI reporting facility3
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI)3
Auto repair or body shop (mapped facility)1
Large hazardous waste generator1
Hazardous waste transporter1
Heliport1
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.

Latham Pool Products Inc D/B/A Viking Pools-Wv, Jane Lew
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Styrene, Methyl methacrylate. Reports carcinogens. 1,256,185 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 26378VKNGP439IN (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 9.2
Lightburn Extraction Plant, Jane Lew
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Formaldehyde, Benzene, Toluene, Xylene (mixed isomers) and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 58,689 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 2637WLGHTB6644L (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 8.2
Multi-Chem Group Jane Lew Wv Facility, Jane Lew
Toxic chemical release facility (TRI). Chemicals: Methanol, Ethylbenzene, Toluene, Ethylene glycol and 2 more. Reports carcinogens. 10,064 lbs released over 5 years.
TRI facility ID 2637WMLTCH1PPLA (U.S. EPA Toxics Release Inventory)
Severity 7.6
Viking Pools Inc, Jane Lew
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008055503 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.4
Lightburn Extraction Plant, Jane Lew
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071433864 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 6.1
Weston Saitary Board, Weston
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110039982873 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.8
Multi-Chem Group Llc, Jane Lew
TRI reporting facility.
EPA FRS registry ID 110042192935 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 5.5
Grand Avenue Subd., Weston
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010880966 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.5
Craig & Melody Snyder Ministries, Alum Bridge
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110009117302 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Nre Hagerstown, Inc., Weston
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010869257 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Meadows At Stonecoal Creek, Horner
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046128365 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Key Energy, Jane Lew
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046130290 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Jane Lew Psd Water System, Jane Lew
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055032735 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Mountain State Waste - Jane Lew Operating Division, Jane Lew
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071338034 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Jane Lew, Jane Lew
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071405194 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Unlimited Energy Services, Llc, Jane Lew
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110071426962 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4.3
Burnsville I-79 Rest Area, Burnsville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010809615 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Summit Transport And Environmental, Weston
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110046129346 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 4
Equitrans, L. P., Copley Run Sta. # 70, Weston
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110001929940 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Rgl, Inc, Jane Lew
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110041938561 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
District Seven Heavy Maintenance, Weston
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110055491490 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
The Meadows At Stonecoal Lake Homeowners Association, Inc., Horner
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110070596807 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.8
Dominion Transmission - Camden Station, Camden
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110006149747 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Viking Pools Inc, Jane Lew
Major air pollution source.
EPA FRS registry ID 110008055503 (U.S. EPA ECHO) Agency record
Severity 3.5
Stonewall Resort State Park, Walkersville
NPDES wastewater discharge permit.
EPA FRS registry ID 110010859623 (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.

No correctional facility with an EPA record is located in this county.

Discovery / public records

Records to request for Lewis County

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