Incidence rate of malignant tumors of the lung/bronchus, pleura, larynx, pharynx, and peritoneum during the period 1974 to 1987 was studied in a Croatian coastal area with an asbestos processing plant which started to operate in 1954. The study area covers 169 km2 with 11,270 inhabitants: 5590 men and 5710 women (average number during the study period). The calculated number of inhabitants aged 35 and older was 4639 (41.1%), 11.5% were aged 60 or older, and the average age was 32 years. Over the observed 14-year period there were 51 cases of malignant tumors, 40 in men and 11 in women: lung/bronchus cancer, 36-29 men and 7 women; mesothelioma, 5-2 men and 3 women; laryngeal cancer, 5 men; pharyngeal cancer, 4-3 men and 1 women; and peritoneal cancer, 1 man. The results of the study showed that the incidence of lung/bronchus cancer in the studied population was half that in Croatia. There were also fewer malignant tumors of the pharynx and peritoneum in this area than in Croatia. On the other hand, the incidence of primary tumors of the pleura was more than 5 times as high and of laryngeal tumors more than 2 times as high as in Croatia. Evaluation of the data showed that distance from the source of emissions was not crucial for the development of tumors. The incidence of the tumors in the town with the asbestos factory was the lowest. Among and within different towns/villages the tumor incidence varied; in some the observed rate was higher than the expected rate. A more detailed analysis indicated a possible influence of the relief and prevailing wind direction on the environmental contamination with asbestos from the emissions source and consequently on an uneven distribution of the tumor incidence among separate settlements in the area under study.