TESTS HAVE shown that a house in Sligo had levels of radioactive radon gas 13 times higher than the safe limit. Residents living there received radiation exposures equivalent to nine chest X-rays a day or more than 3,200 a year.
Radon exposure in Irish homes and workplaces causes an estimated 200 lung cancer deaths every year, according to the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland. It published a joint statement with the Health Service Executive on Wednesday in which the two bodies argued strongly for Government action to reduce deaths caused by radon.
“It is a significant public health problem that needs a co-ordinated Government response,” David Fenton, senior scientist at the institute, said yesterday. “What we are looking for is a Government-led strategy.”
The institute released details yesterday of the latest home discovered to have dangerous radon levels. “We regularly find homes with very high radon concentrations and we know there are more,” Mr Fenton said.
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that seeps from the ground. It is harmless but it can become trapped under buildings, concentrating there and exposing residents to significant radiation levels.
These are measured in becquerels per cubic metre of air and the safety limit set by the institute and government is 200. The home in Co Sligo had levels of 2,600 becquerels, 13 times the maximum limit, Mr Fenton said.
Last year a home in north Kerry was found to have levels at 49,000 becquerels, the highest yet found anywhere in Europe.
“Ireland has a particular problem with radon,” Mr Fenton said. “We rank eighth in the world for radon, with average national levels of 89. The world average is only 39 and the UK average is 20.
Householders tended to ignore the potential problem even when they knew they lived in a high radon area, he added. “It is a problem only if you are ignoring it.”
If tests showed that radon was present at high levels there were simple, low-cost methods for reducing it, Mr Fenton said.
The high number of radon-related deaths however required a coherent response.
He called for changes to building regulations to protect against radon. The requirement for a radon test at the time of a house sale, as occurred with the building energy rating test, would bring quick results.
A radon campaign similar to those encouraging people to give up smoking could also help make people aware of the dangers posed by radon, he added. “We can only do so much as a small public body. The Government needs to pick this up and run with it.”
You cannot see, taste or smell radon, nor does it cause coughs or other symptoms so the only way to confirm if it is present at high levels is by testing.
More information about testing your home and reducing a radon risk is available on the institute’s website, www.rpii.ie or by phoning 1800 300 600. The institute charges €56 to test for radon and can also supply a list of companies who do this testing.