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# North Dakota’s Red River Valley a pesticide and cancer hotspot
- URL: https://www.investigatemidwest.org/north-dakotas-red-river-valley-a-pesticide-and-cancer-hotspot/
- Published: 2026-04-07T19:48:11.000Z
- Updated: 2026-04-07T19:48:11.000Z
- Description: The state’s easternmost counties have the highest rates of agrichemical use and cancer rates.
- Author: Ben Felder, Investigate Midwest
- Tags: Data Harvest, cancer rates, cancer rates in north dakota, Cass County, cass county cancer rates, eastern north dakota, TP::Explainer, national cancer institute, pembina county, pembina county cancer rates, pesticide use increase, pesticides-and-cancer-2026, pesticides and cancer, red river valley cancer rates, richland county, richland county cancer rates, U.S. Geological Survey, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-06-18 04:56

Eastern North Dakota is a top corn and soybean-growing region, with many of its counties among the nation's largest users of pesticides and herbicides.

It’s also home to higher-than-average cancer rates.

Of the top 500 U.S. counties for pesticide use, seven are in North Dakota, all within the Red River Valley.

Three of those counties — Pembina, Cass and Richland — also have cancer rates higher than the national average, according to an analysis of data from both the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Cancer Institute.

In fact, across the state, the higher a county’s pesticide use, the higher its cancer rates tend to be.

Many states across the Midwest have high rates of pesticide use and higher-than-average cancer rates.

But North Dakota is one of only two states where lawmakers have banned residents from suing agrichemical companies, such as Bayer, the maker of Roundup, an herbicide.

[House Bill 1318](https://ndlegis.gov/assembly/69-2025/regular/bill-overview/bo1318.html?bill%5Fyear=2025&bill%5Fnumber=1318&ref=investigatemidwest.org), passed last year, was pushed for by Bayer and other agrochemical groups.

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For the past year, Investigate Midwest, in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s StoryReach U.S. Fellowship and the Fund for Investigative Journalism, has been reporting on the link between pesticides and cancer. You can read more of our reporting below, and explore data in your own community. 

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cd/d3/cdd3c059-8898-40b1-bcf7-cb2d3aa89775/content/images/investigatemidwest-org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/1-19-26-lawler-pesticides-cancer-002.jpg)

[Share your story](#2026pesticidestoryshare)

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![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/cd/d3/cdd3c059-8898-40b1-bcf7-cb2d3aa89775/content/images/investigatemidwest-org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/data-harvest-teaser-image-37.png)

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Have you or a loved one been diagnosed with cancer that you believe may have been caused by widespread pesticide use? If so, Investigate Midwest **invites you to complete this brief form** and help us as explore this topic.

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