Compared to the provincial average, Wellington County homes are more than twice as likely to have unsafe radon gas levels, according to Health Canada.
Radon is a colourless, odourless and radioactive gas that occurs naturally from the breakdown of uranium in soil and rocks, explained Susan Flynn, senior manager in cancer prevention for the Ontario division of the Canadian Cancer Society
“People are exposed to the radon when they breath in air with high concentrations of radon and this can lead to damage to the cells of the lung which can cause lung cancer,” Flynn said.
Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking, and is linked to approximately 16% of lung cancer deaths in Canada.
Dr. Nicola Mercer, medical officer of health and CEO for Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, stated in a recent press release that, “The risk for those who smoke and have high levels of radon in their homes is especially high.”
She added, “Testing for radon is inexpensive, easy and winter is a great time to start testing.”
On average, about 11 per cent of homes in Wellington County are above safe levels of radon, according to a Health Canada survey, whereas the Ontario average is 5%. Basements often contain the highest level of radon concentration in homes.
“Radon comes from the soil and if it seeps into basements, which often don’t have windows or doors open, particularly in the winter months, then families who might have play rooms or bedrooms in their basement would be exposed to this radon, this cancer causing gas,” Flynn said.
“But only 5% of Ontarians that we spoke to are aware of radon or have tested for radon.”
The Canadian Cancer Society did a survey of over 1,000 Ontarians and found that 90% of parents didn’t realize radon causes cancer and only 5% had tested their homes for the gas, Flynn explained.
The survey was commissioned to mark Lung Cancer Awareness and Radon Action Month in November. All those surveyed had a finished or partially finished basement and one or more children under the age of 18.
Because radon is impossible to detect, the Canadian Cancer Society recommends that every home be tested.
“If you have a basement, particularly if you or your family spend a lot of time in the basement or you have a rental in the basement, like an apartment, and even for people without basements because the radon gas seeps in through where the house foundation meets the soil,” she said.
It’s important to have the home checked regularly, especially if levels are close to dangerous, because there can be changes in the foundation and soil that could impact the level in the home over time.
“Another reason why it’s important to test the home for radon is that the impact or the effects might not be apparent right away,” Flynn said.
“So the best way is prevention, which is to purchase an at-home test kit or have a radon specialist do a test in the area of concern and see if the results are above or below what Health Canada recommends as safe.”
All homes contain some radon, but for homes that exceed a safe level, Flynn said remediation is recommended.
“That would be calling in a radon mitigation specialist who would put in a valve or some sort of ventilation piece to help the radon levels remain safe and that can cost between $1,500 and $3,000,” she said.
The Canadian Cancer Society is currently urging the public to ask their MPP to focus on Bill 11, the Radon Awareness and Prevention Act, which proponents say will help prevent radon from ever being a problem in new houses by installing pro-active mitigation measures at the time of construction.
“It would probably be putting some sort of valve in that would help ventilate the space and so minimize high levels of radon gas,” Flynn said.
Those interested can visittakeaction.cancer.ca for more information.
Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, together with the City of Guelph and Health Canada, planned to hold a free drop-in community information session to answer questions about radon gas on Nov. 12 from 4:30 to 7pm at 160 Chancellors Way in Guelph. Radon test kits will be available for purchase and attendees will have chance to win a free kit.
Due to high radon levels in the city (18% of tested homes had unsafe levels), Guelph has launched a Radon Gas Mitigation Program, requiring all new buildings and most additions to include mitigation measures in compliance with the Ontario Building Code.
For more on the city’s program visit guelph.ca/radon.
