Important Information on Radon Home Testing
EPA recommends that all homes should be tested and that any home with a measured radon level indoors of 4 picocuries per liter of air (pCi/L), or more, be mitigated to reduce radon levels. Radon is an odorless, colorless radioactive gas found in soil and water, and produced by the decay of uranium found naturally in soil. You should know that the average indoor radon level in the United States is 1.3 pCi/L, while the average outdoor (ambient) radon level is .4 pCi/L (one-tenth of the 4.0 pCi/L EPA action level). EPA's estimate of 14,000 radon related lung cancer deaths annually is based on exposure at 1.3 pCi/L over a long term.
In September 1988, the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General issued a Health Advisory urging all Americans to test their homes for radon, and to fix them when elevated levels were found. In October that same year, Congress said that the national long-term goal ... with respect to radon ... is that (indoor air) should be as free of radon as the ambient air outside ....
Ten years after the Surgeon General's warning, on February 19, 1998, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), reported that 12% of lung cancer deaths are linked to radon. The NAS is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization. NAS' best estimate is that radon causes between 15,000 and 22,000 lung cancer deaths each year in the United States. Further, the NAS found that even very small exposures to radon can result in lung cancer.
Lead is a highly toxic metal that was used for many years in products found in and around our homes. Lead may cause a range of health effects, from behavioral problems and learning disabilities, to seizures and death. Children 6 years old and under are most at risk, because their bodies are growing quickly.
Research suggests that the primary sources of lead exposure for most children are:
- deteriorating lead-based paint,
- lead contaminated dust, and
- lead contaminated residential soil.
EPA is playing a major role in addressing these residential lead hazards. In 1978, there were nearly three to four million children with elevated blood lead levels in the United States. By 2002, that number had dropped to 310,000 kids, and it continues to decline. While we still have a significant challenge, EPA is very proud of how federal, state, tribal, and private sector partners have coordinated efforts with the public to better protect our children.
Since the 1980's, EPA and its federal partners have phased out lead in gasoline, reduced lead in drinking water, reduced lead in industrial air pollution, and banned or limited lead used in consumer products, including residential paint. States and municipalities have set up programs to identify and treat lead poisoned children and to rehabilitate deteriorated housing. Parents, too, have greatly helped to reduce lead exposures to their children by cleaning and maintaining homes, having their children's blood lead levels checked, and promoting proper nutrition. The Agency’s Lead Awareness Program continues to work to protect human health and the environment against the dangers of lead by developing regulations, conducting research, and designing educational outreach efforts and materials.
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Maryland Home Inspection Specialist
PHONE: 410-485-6400
FAX: 410-631-7788
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