Date Published: 01/21/2020 [Source]
We're right in the middle of National Radon Action Month, and it's a good time to remember that homeowners in our area should have their homes tested for the radioactive gas and take steps to reduce the risk if elevated levels are detected.
Radon is colorless and odorless and is produced when uranium breaks down. It can enter your homes in many ways, including through cracks in a home's foundation, windows and other joints.
Exposure to the gas can prove deadly — it's the leading cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers and the second leading cause of lung cancer overall, right behind smoking.
Dangers associated with the gas are real, especially for residents of the Tri-State Area. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, counties in our region sit in the middle of a zone where predicted average indoor screening levels are greater than 4 picocuries per liter of air. And when readings reach that level, the EPA recommends you take action to fix your home.
Included in that zone are Jefferson, Harrison, Belmont and Columbiana counties in Ohio; Hancock and Brooke counties in West Virginia and Beaver and Allegheny counties in Pennsylvania.
In Ohio, for example, the state health department reports that elevated levels of the gas have been found in all 88 counties.
A good first step to protect yourself is to have your home tested for radon.
Ohio's state health department offers free testing kits to homeowners in the state with household incomes less the $80,500. For homeowners with a higher household income, the cost is $10.95, which includes testing.