Date Published: 02/24/2020 [Source]
Did you know that radon is a naturally occurring, radioactive gas?
Radon has no smell, taste, or color. It forms from the breakdown of uranium in soil, rock, and water and circulates into the air you breathe.
When radon is formed under homes and buildings, it can penetrate through cracks in the foundation, leading to high level of radon, especially in enclosed areas.
Sarah Balduf, Environmental Health Director of Genesee and Orleans Counties, explained how easily radon can seep into your home.
"Radon can enter your home through cracks in the foundation, walls, joints, dirt floors, opening of a sump pump, in well-water supply, and from gaps around suspended floors and pipes," she said. "Any home can have high radon levels, whether it is old or new, has a basement or is built on a slab"
It is understandable how radon goes unnoticed, officials said. If high levels of radon in your home are undetected for an extended period of time, the risk for developing lung cancer can occur.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, radon is responsible for more than 20,000 lung cancer deaths per year. It is the leading second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. after smoking and the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.
"However, because you can't see or smell radon, people tend to downplay the health effects and ignore the possibility that there might be a silent killer in their homes," Balduf said.
If test results comeback and the radon levels in your home are greater than 4 picocuries per liter of air, a certified radon mitigator can install a radon reduction system in your home.