Health District Taking Action Against Radon

By John Voket

January is among the months when folks in Newtown stay closest to home, or spend most of their time indoors. And it is months like January when exposure to harmful radon could be at its peak.

The Newtown Health District reminds residents it serves here, and in neighboring Roxbury and Bridgewater, that January is Radon Action Awareness Month.

The district office in Newtown’s Municipal Center has a table full of information, and other free products like pens, magnetic erasable memo pads, paper holders, and auto trash bags, all bearing messages to remind residents about this odorless, colorless, and almost undetectable toxin that has the potential to cause or exacerbate lung cancer.

The district staff is joining with the Connecticut Department of Public Health, the American Lung Association of Connecticut, and the US Environmental Protection Agency urging residents to test their homes for radon, and, if necessary, mitigating high levels when found.

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that enters homes through small cracks and holes in the basement.

According to Donna Culbert, Health District director, at certain levels radon can increase one’s risk of getting lung cancer, and radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United State, behind cigarette smoking, and the leading cause among nonsmokers.

If you smoke cigarettes and have radon in your home, then your risk of getting lung cancer is even greater. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as many as 30,000 US citizens die from radon-induced lung cancer each year.

Ms Culbert said Newtown is in an area of the country where elevated radon levels in homes are quite common.

“Most of Connecticut is located in a zone where there is a high to moderate potential for having a radon issue in the air or water in one’s home,” she said. “Yet, very few people are testing for radon. Now is a good time of year to test.”

The only way to find out if your home has radon is to test for it. The heating season is the best time to test for radon because your home is closed up, and radon levels tend to build up indoors. The Department of Public Health, US Environmental Protection Agency, and the American Lung Association of Connecticut are partnering together to promote radon testing and mitigation during Radon Awareness Month.

Residents who are interested in testing their home for radon can purchase a test kit from a local hardware store for as little as $6, from any home improvement center, or order one from the American Lung Association at 800-LUNG-USA for $12.

For additional information on radon, radon testing, and mitigation, call the Newtown Health District at 203-270-4291 or visit its website at www.newtown-ct.gov. Then click on Town Departments, click on the Health Department, and then click on Radon.