Radon

Radon is a radioactive gas that doesn’t have a color, odor, or taste. Radon seeps up from the earth into the air we breathe, and comes from the natural breakdown of uranium in almost all soil.

To find out more about radon, please visit the EPA radon website.

Your home can be at risk for radon if it is:

• New
• Old
• Well-sealed
• Drafty
• Built with a basement
• Built without a basement

Radon typically moves up through the ground to the air above and into your home through cracks and other holes in the foundation. Your home traps radon inside, where it can build up.

Any home may have a radon problem. This means homes can be at risk for radon whether it is new, old, well-sealed, drafty, with or without a basement.

Nearly 1 out of every 15 homes in the U.S. is estimated to have elevated radon levels.

If radon is allowed to accumulate, it becomes a health concern.

Exposure to the radioactive particles in radon can damage the cells that line the lung and can cause lung cancer.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in Wyoming. The EPA estimates that radon causes about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year in the United States.

Radon can make the lung damage caused by smoking worse, putting smokers with elevated radon levels in their homes at an even higher risk for lung cancer.

Radon test kits can be ordered from the Wyoming Radon Program at $7 for one kit or $12 for two kits. Please call 307.777.6015 to order a kit.

If the test kit finds elevated radon levels in your home, please see “Find a radon service provider” below. These services are relatively simple and can usually be completed in about a day, providing an immediate reduction in radon levels.

Please visit AARST-NRPP.com to find a certified radon service provider near you.