Statement of Support for Pennsylvania House Bill 1057
Our children are our greatest resource for the future, and providing a healthy environment for their education by testing for radioactive radon gas in the structures in which they learn is essential. Our children are growing and their lungs are very receptive to inhaling radioactive particles as they are actively learning and moving in our private and public schools. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a nationwide survey of radon levels in schools estimates that nearly one in five has at least one classroom with radon exposure above the 4.0 picocurie per liter of air (pCi/L)--the EPA action level in the United States. The Southwestern Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project indicates that 69% of the schools have not been tested and 28% of those tested report radon levels above 4.0 pCi/L.
There are 500 public school districts in Pennsylvania, consisting of 3,287 schools and 120 charter schools.
According to Kids Count Data Center the 2017-2018 Enrollment - Number of students (pre-K - grade 12) in Pennsylvania is 1,719,336
Pennsylvania has one of the most serious radon problems in the country with an estimated 40% of the homes tested for radon showing levels above 4.0 pCi/L. Radon is the leading environmental cause of cancer mortality--taking an estimated 21,000 lives annually; it is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. Our children are growing, and their lungs are very receptive to inhaling radioactive particles emitted from the decay of uranium in the ground beneath learning institutions and homes. The solid radioactive particles emitted from the decay products can be inhaled into the lungs and the risk of the adverse health effect of radon gas exposure—lung cancer—increases proportionately with increasing radon concentrations. Any structure that touches the ground is susceptible to the seepage of radon gas into the building through cracks and openings in the foundation, expansion joints, HVAC ducts and pressurization patterns. In 2005 the Surgeon General urged all Americans to test their homes and to remedy the problem as soon as possible if the level was elevated.
Because radon cannot be detected through human sensory means, testing is the only way to know if this silent killer exists in a structure. The president of National Education Association, Keith Geiger, states “All students have the right to expect a safe and healthy environment. Teachers and other school employees should encourage their schools to conduct radon tests and undertake all necessary corrective actions.
The health of our children demands no less.” There is an American National Standard that addresses properly measuring radon in schools, Protocols for Measuring Radon
and Radon Decay Products in Schools and Large Buildings. (MALB 2014)
Actually, there is no safe level of radon exposure. The World Health Organization uses 2.7 as a reference level for action.