Forsyth, NC

Moderate Risk (42/100)

A PlainEnviro-computed score from reported facility/violation counts, not an official EPA rating, health forecast, or population-adjusted rate. See methodology. This is a different measure than the EJ Screening score for this county, which ranks it by percentile against every other tracked county rather than against fixed national thresholds.

Environmental data for Forsyth in North Carolina · Population: 386,740

Forsyth, NC is tracked across three EPA datasets covering 26 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) facilities, 5 Safe Drinking Water Act systems, and 0 Superfund National Priorities List sites. Together these generate an environmental burden score of 42/100 (Moderate Risk), calibrated against national distributions for facility density, chemical release volume, Superfund concentration, and water-system health violations.

Industrial disclosures inside the county total 4.2M lbs of reported toxic releases under EPCRA Section 313, while 2 water systems carry an active health-based violation in the SDWIS record. EPA Air Quality System monitors logged a median AQI of 47 and a peak AQI of 122 in 2024, with 57% of observed days rated "Good" (0–50).

All figures below draw directly from federal EPA records, TRI self-reported emissions, SDWIS compliance history, NPL Hazard Ranking System scores, and AQS daily AQI summaries, and are not adjusted, weighted, or forecast. A past violation or elevated score does not itself indicate current unsafe conditions; it documents the regulatory and disclosure history publicly filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the most recent reporting cycle.

Population
386,740
TRI Facilities
26
Water Systems
5
Superfund Sites
0
Total Releases
4.2M lbs

Air Quality History (2020–2024)

EPA Air Quality Index (AQI) data showing how many days per year fall into each air quality category.

Year Good Moderate Unhealthy (SG) Max AQI
2024 210 (57%) 152 4 122
2023 165 (45%) 193 6 154
2022 209 (57%) 155 1 137
2021 201 (55%) 161 3 124
2020 233 (64%) 133 0 97
2024 Good Air Quality: 57% of days
Unhealthy days: 4
Median AQI: 47

Source: EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by County EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by County AQI categories: Good (0-50), Moderate (51-100), Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (101-150), Unhealthy (151-200), Very Unhealthy (201-300), Hazardous (301+)

For real-time air quality readings and pollutant breakdowns in North Carolina, see the EPA's AirNow.gov.

Water Systems (5)

System Population Violations
WINSTON-SALEM, CITY OF 388,060 0
CANTEBURY TRAILS 279 0
PIEDMONT ESTATES 233 0
MONROE`S MHP 187 1
COUNTRY LIVING APTS 66 2

TRI Facilities (26)

# Facility Total Releases
1 Ardagh Metal Beverage USA Inc Re: Winston Salem Plant 2.6M lbs
2 Ingredion Inc - Winston Salem Plant 340.9K lbs
3 Tex-Tech Coatings LLC 257.8K lbs
4 R J Reynolds Tobacco Co Whitaker Park 179.6K lbs
5 Siemens Energy Winston Service Center 156.8K lbs
6 Clarios LLC 145.8K lbs
7 R J Reynolds Tobacco Co Tvill 137.7K lbs
8 American Snuff Co LLC Taylor Brothers Div 117.2K lbs
9 Triseal Opco LLC - Polo Road Complex 78.5K lbs
10 Cres Tobacco Co Inc 62.6K lbs
11 Stratford Metal Finishing Inc 61.8K lbs
12 Structural Steel of Carolina 30.9K lbs
13 Progress Rail 3.2K lbs
14 John Deere Kernersville LLC 2.3K lbs
15 Weaver Fertilizer Inc. 996 lbs
16 Powerlab Inc 422 lbs
17 Hayward Holdings Inc. 127 lbs
18 Dfa Dairy Brands Fluid LLC DBA Pet Dairy 40 lbs
19 South-East Lumber Co 10 lbs
20 Downtown Concrete Plant 1 lbs
21 Argos Clemmonsville Concrete Plant 0 lbs
22 Concrete Supply Co LLC - Lowery St 0 lbs
23 Central Carolina Concrete LLC Winston-Salem 0 lbs
24 The Harris Products Group/winston Salem 0 lbs
25 Foothills Brewing 0 lbs
26 Gac Winston Salem Inc 0 lbs

Cities in Forsyth (6)

Clemmons
Pop: -
1 facilities · 1 water
King
Pop: -
1 facilities · 1 water
Tobaccoville
Pop: -
1 facilities · 0 water
Winston Salem
Pop: -
19 facilities · 0 water
Kernersville
Pop: -
4 facilities · 2 water
Rural Hall
Pop: -
1 facilities · 0 water

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the environmental risk level in Forsyth, North Carolina?
Forsyth, NC has an environmental risk score of 42/100 (Moderate Risk), based on 26 TRI facilities, 0 Superfund sites, and 5 water systems on record. 2 water systems have health-based violations. Source: EPA TRI, SDWIS, and Superfund NPL.
Are there Superfund sites in Forsyth?
No Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) sites are currently registered in Forsyth, NC in the EPA database.
How many toxic release facilities are in Forsyth?
Forsyth, NC has 26 TRI-reporting facilities on record with the EPA Toxic Release Inventory, with a combined total of 4.2M lbs in reported toxic releases. TRI facilities self-report annual chemical release data to the EPA.
What is the air quality in Forsyth?
In 2024, Forsyth, NC recorded a median AQI of 47 and a peak AQI of 122. 57% of monitored days had "Good" air quality (AQI 0–50). Source: EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by County.
Is the drinking water safe in Forsyth?
Forsyth, NC has 5 EPA-regulated water systems. 2 systems have reported health-based violations (MCL exceedances). A past violation does not necessarily mean water is currently unsafe. For current water quality, contact your local water utility. Source: EPA SDWIS.
What environmental agencies cover Forsyth?
Environmental compliance in Forsyth, North Carolina is overseen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at the federal level and the North Carolina state environmental agency. Facilities report to the EPA Toxic Release Inventory, water systems are regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act, and contaminated sites are managed under the Superfund program. Contact your state environmental agency for local concerns.

What does this county environmental profile show?

This county environmental profile rolls up EPA Toxics Release Inventory facility reports, Safe Drinking Water Information System public-water-system filings, and Superfund National Priorities List sites for the county boundary defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Facility counts reflect facilities with a reporting address inside the county, not where downstream environmental effects may be observed. Population figures are from the most recent Census ACS 5-year estimate. The county detail page is updated whenever the upstream EPA programs publish revised data; see the methodology page for the documented ingest cadence and the editorial choices governing how aggregations are computed.

Related

Data sourced from U.S. EPA environmental datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainEnviro Editorial