Rutherford, NC

Moderate Risk (46/100)

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 Rutherford in North Carolina · Population: 64,850

Rutherford, NC is tracked across three EPA datasets covering 7 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) facilities, 11 Safe Drinking Water Act systems, and 0 Superfund National Priorities List sites. Together these generate an environmental burden score of 46/100 (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 47.0M lbs of reported toxic releases under EPCRA Section 313, while 8 water systems carry an active health-based violation in the SDWIS record. No EPA Air Quality System monitors currently report data for this county.

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
64,850
TRI Facilities
7
Water Systems
11
Superfund Sites
0
Total Releases
47.0M lbs

Water Systems (11)

System Population Violations
FOREST CITY, TOWN OF 21,521 0
BROAD RIVER WATER AUTHORITY 18,242 0
ELLENBORO TOWN OF 2,322 1
CONCORD COMM WATER SYSTEM 1,867 1
LAKE LURE, TOWN OF 1,176 1
BOSTIC, TOWN OF 953 0
HIGH HAMPTON INN/COUNTRY CLUB 770 1
LAKE LURE VILLAGE RESORT 226 3
FIREFLY COVE 99 1
CHIMNEY ROCK VILLAGE 94 2
COLONIAL MANOR REST HOME 27 2

TRI Facilities (7)

# Facility Total Releases
1 Befesa Zinc Metal LLC 43.1M lbs
2 Duke Energy Carolinas LLC - Rogers Energy Complex 3.7M lbs
3 Trelleborg Coated Systems US Inc 132.2K lbs
4 Danfoss Power Solutions II LLC 26.1K lbs
5 Aallied Die Casting of N.c. 15.2K lbs
6 Tri-City Concrete LLC 0 lbs
7 Westrock Converting 0 lbs

Cities in Rutherford (3)

Mooresboro
Pop: -
2 facilities · 3 water
Forest City
Pop: -
3 facilities · 1 water
Rutherfordton
Pop: -
2 facilities · 2 water

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the environmental risk level in Rutherford, North Carolina?
Rutherford, NC has an environmental risk score of 46/100 (Moderate Risk), based on 7 TRI facilities, 0 Superfund sites, and 11 water systems on record. 8 water systems have health-based violations. Source: EPA TRI, SDWIS, and Superfund NPL.
Are there Superfund sites in Rutherford?
No Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) sites are currently registered in Rutherford, NC in the EPA database.
How many toxic release facilities are in Rutherford?
Rutherford, NC has 7 TRI-reporting facilities on record with the EPA Toxic Release Inventory, with a combined total of 47.0M lbs in reported toxic releases. TRI facilities self-report annual chemical release data to the EPA.
What is the air quality in Rutherford?
Air quality monitoring data (EPA AQS) is not available for Rutherford, NC. This may indicate no EPA monitoring stations are located in the county. For regional air quality data, see the state environmental profile or visit EPA's AirNow.gov.
Is the drinking water safe in Rutherford?
Rutherford, NC has 11 EPA-regulated water systems. 8 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 Rutherford?
Environmental compliance in Rutherford, 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