A Jan. 19 editorial headlines “Radon: danger lurking beneath” and goes on to warn “It’s a life-threatening problem that’s largely being ignored. It’s radon, a cancer-causing, radioactive gas that can collect in basements of homes or on the first floor of homes built on cement slabs.”
WATCHDOG: It is a good idea to test your basement. There is a good likelihood in this part of the country is you will show a radon reading a bit above the level that the Environmental Protection Agency suggests warrants remediation. But don’t panic. Unless it is much higher, you should do some research before enriching the industry that has grown up around and helps perpetuate radon scare.
The Environmental Protection Agency reports: “Radon is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year. About 2,900 of these deaths occur among people who have never smoked.” In a country of over 300 million, that is a very tiny figure, for non-smokers not much different than the chances of being hit by lightening. (1 in 700,000.) And it is reasonable to assume that those who contract cancer are in locations of radon levels far above the level that triggers concern.
A study in 1996, the latest we could find on Google, as reported by the Associated Press in the New York Times states:
“A major study has failed to connect indoor radon exposure with lung cancer, raising new uncertainty about public health warnings that the colorless, odorless gas is responsible for as much as 10 percent of the United States’ lung cancer.
“Americans have spent about $400 million testing for radon and renovating homes with high levels. But experts said today that several studies now suggest the minimum residential level of the gas that poses a significant cancer risk is not known.”
Our point, test but take into consideration the level found and the risk involved compared to other risks we all run and don’t spend thousands of dollars to prevent.
Caveat: If basement are being used for bedrooms or family rooms, testing and, where recommended, remediation becomes more important.
