RadonNavajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency

Air & Toxics Department/Radon

Program

History• “Unknown” lung disease in

miners in the 1400’s.• 1879 autopsies of European

miners: lung cancer (lymphosarcoma), called “mountain sickness”.

• Excess lung cancer deaths observed in uranium miners in U.S., Czechoslovakia, France, and Canada.

• Excess lung cancer deaths in other underground miners in Newfoundland, Sweden, Britain, France, China, and U.S.

• Studies of Navajo uranium miners (no smoking) ruled out smoking as the cause.

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What Is It?• Radon is a tasteless,

colorless, odorless gas• Radon is naturally

occurring and can be found all over the U.S.

Health Effects• Approximately 15,000-

20,000 lung cancer deaths per year

• Classified scientifically as a “known human carcinogen” (Class A)

• Second leading cause of lung cancer after tobacco smoke

• Based on studies by the National Academy of Sciences, the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control, and others

How Does Radon Get Into Your Home?

• Radon gets in through:▫ Cracks in Solid Floors▫ Construction Joints▫ Cracks in Walls▫ Gaps in Suspended Floors▫ Gaps around Service

Pipes▫ Cavities Inside Walls▫ The Water Supply*

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Radon Numbers for the Reservation

Radon Action Level

The USEPA, Surgeon General, and Navajo Nation EPA Recommend Reducing Levels

Below 4 pCi/L

BUT, there is no ‘safe’ level –lower is better

Identifying a Radon Problem• Short Term Testing• Remain in your home

from 2 to 90 days• Types of Testing

Apparatus• Charcoal Canisters• Alpha Track Monitors• Electret Ion Chamber• Continuous Monitors• Charcoal Liquid

Scintillation• Good for Quick Results

but less likely to give you an average yearly Radon level

Identifying a Radon Problem• Long Term Testing

▫ Remain in your home for more than 90 Days

▫ Types of Testing Apparatus Alpha Track Electret Detector

▫ Better for learning your year-round Radon average exposure

Fixing a Radon Problem• Most Common Approach is: • Active Soil Depressurization

▫ ASD systems consist of a plastic pipe extending from the soil to a point above the roof, with an in-line fan which generates a slight “vacuum” in the soil and draws the radon into the system rather than allowing it to enter the house.

▫ Works because the soil “sucks” on the house, rather than house “sucking” on the soil

EPA Recommendations• Test your home for Radon

– It’s easy and inexpensive• Fix your home if your

Radon level is 4 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) or higher

• Radon levels less than 4 pCi/L still pose a risk, and in many cases it can be reduced

Contact Information

•Who you gonna call???▫John Plummer (928) 871-7703/6790▫Terron Chischilly (928) 871-7863▫Nolan Hoskie (928) 871-7863

Radon