City · TRI 2024

Townsend, Montana Pollution

1 TRI facilities inside the city limits and 1 public water system serving residents. In-city TRI releases more than doubled year over year (+115%). Toxic releases concentrations have more than doubled since 2010.

FIPS 3074575 · population 2,176 · Broadwater County

IN-CITY TRI RELEASES · 20102024
Bar chart of annual values from 2010 to 2024, in lb. Most recent year (2024): 91k.101k'10'12'14'16'18'20'22'2491k
Anomaly engine

Notable Signals

UNRESOLVED VIOLATION · SDWIS VIOLATION

Contaminant 1094

Unresolved Phase I/II/V Inorganic Chemical Rules violation cited in 2020 (contaminant 1094).

EPA SDWIS record

Pollutant pathways

Townsend Pollutant Multi-Year Trends

HAZARDOUS AIR2020 VINTAGE

Lifetime cancer risk all pollutants (100 in a million (EPA elevated threshold))Health riskEPA-modeled added cancer cases per million residents from a lifetime of breathing local air toxics. EPA flags 100-in-a-million as elevated.

11.2 per million · 2020 vintage

Single-vintage exposure modeling — EPA cadence is multi-year, so no trend line yet.

HAZARDOUS AIR2020 VINTAGE

Formaldehyde ambient mean (0.077 µg/m³ (1-in-a-million URE))Health riskAn air toxic emitted by refineries, wood products, and combustion. EPA classifies it as a known human carcinogen — long-term inhalation raises cancer risk.

0.69 µg/m³ · 2020 vintage

Single-vintage exposure modeling — EPA cadence is multi-year, so no trend line yet.

HAZARDOUS AIR2020 VINTAGE

Benzene ambient mean (0.13 µg/m³ (1-in-a-million URE))Health riskAn air toxic from gasoline, refineries, and tobacco smoke. A known human carcinogen — chronic exposure is linked to leukemia and other blood cancers.

0.07 µg/m³ · 2020 vintage

Single-vintage exposure modeling — EPA cadence is multi-year, so no trend line yet.

TRI AIRSINCE 2010

TRI air releases (5.1 fugitive + 5.2 stack)Health riskToxic chemicals reported by industrial facilities as released into the air — fugitive leaks plus smokestack emissions. Higher pounds means more inhaled exposure for nearby residents.

47 lb · +216% YoY · since 2010

TRI air releases (5.1 fugitive + 5.2 stack) volumes here are too small to anchor a multi-year trend; YoY movement is still shown above.

TRI WATERSINCE 2010

TRI water releases (5.3)Health riskToxic chemicals reported by industrial facilities as discharged to surface waters (rivers, lakes, the ocean). Affects fishing, recreation, and downstream drinking-water intakes.

0 lb · YoY · since 2010

TRI water releases (5.3) volumes here are too small to anchor a multi-year trend; YoY movement is still shown above.

TRI LANDSINCE 2013

TRI land + off-site releasesHealth riskToxic chemicals released to land on-site or transferred off-site for disposal — landfills, deep-well injection, and similar. Risks groundwater contamination over time.

91k lb · +115% YoY · +1060% since 2013

TRI land + off-site releases concentrations have more than doubled since 2013.

GHGSINCE 2010

Greenhouse gases (GHGRP large emitters, through 2023)Health riskGreenhouse gases reported by large industrial emitters under EPA's GHGRP, in metric tons of CO₂ equivalent. Drives climate warming and the heat-related health effects that follow.

0.3M metric tons CO₂e · -13% YoY · +6% since 2010

Greenhouse gases (GHGRP large emitters, through 2023) concentrations are roughly unchanged from 2010.

Top facilities · TRI 2024

Largest Emitters Inside The City

FacilityTop chemicalTotal releasesYoY
Graymont Western US INC Indian Creek Lime ProductionGraymont LTDLead And Lead CompoundsHealth riskNeurotoxin. Even low childhood exposure impairs cognitive development; chronic adult exposure damages kidneys and the cardiovascular system. (EPA, ATSDR)91k lb+115%
Drinking water · SDWIS

Water Systems Serving Townsend

1 unresolved violation on the SDWIS record across utilities serving this city.

SDWIS · 5-YR WINDOW
1

Utilities serving

SDWIS · 5-YR WINDOW
2,000

Population served

SDWIS · 5-YR WINDOW
0

Health-based · 5yr

SDWIS · 5-YR WINDOW
1

Unresolved

Water systemPWSIDPopulation servedHealth-based · 5yrStatus
Townsend City Of MunicipalMT00003442,0000UNRESOLVED

A public water systemis the regulated entity, not the city. EPA's SDWIS definition covers anything serving 25+ people for 60+ days a year or with 15+ service connections — that includes municipal utilities (City of Stockton), water districts, mobile home parks operating their own wells, schools, and small private subdivisions. Each system is independently monitored. Some systems serve multiple cities; some cities are served by many systems.

Equity context · ACS 2018-2022 · USEPA-clone EJ disparity

Who Lives In Townsend

Townsend, Montana (Census place block groups): 2,176 residents. Why we surface this →

POPULATION SHARE
10.0%

Low-income

POPULATION SHARE
11.7%

People of color

POPULATION SHARE
5.6%

Under age 5

POPULATION SHARE
20.8%

Over age 64

Source: Census ACS 2018-2022 (5-year) + USEPA-clone EJ blockgroup stats (raw indicators + EJ disparity mirror).

Health context

Co-Located Health Indicators

Modeled adult-prevalence estimates published by CDC PLACES, paired with this city's pollution and demographic context. Comparisons are ecological, not causal — pollution and disease prevalence covary at the area level, but the data does not attribute any individual's diagnosis to local exposure. How this section works →

Adult asthma (current)

BRFSS 2023
11.4%
+5% vs Montana mean+18% vs US mean

CDC PLACES · 2025 release · BRFSS 2022-2023

COPD prevalence

BRFSS 2023
9.5%
+23% vs Montana mean+33% vs US mean

CDC PLACES · 2025 release · BRFSS 2022-2023

Coronary heart disease

BRFSS 2023
8.7%
+14% vs Montana mean+11% vs US mean

CDC PLACES · 2025 release · BRFSS 2022-2023

Diabetes (diagnosed)

BRFSS 2023
12.1%
+7% vs Montana mean-15% vs US mean

CDC PLACES · 2025 release · BRFSS 2022-2023

Frequent mental distress

BRFSS 2023
17.7%
+10% vs Montana mean+21% vs US mean

CDC PLACES · 2025 release · BRFSS 2022-2023

PLACES uses BRFSS-modeled small-area estimates, not individual records. Crude prevalence shown above is the local rate as published; comparators are age-adjusted vs the Montana mean and the US mean — both population-weighted across counties — so geographies with different age structures stay apples-to-apples. Sources: CDC PLACES · 2025 release · BRFSS 2022-2023.

Sources.