CR3 News Magazine 2020 VOL 4: September Radon, Schools & Home Study | Page 26
914545SGOXXX10.1177/2158244020914545SAGE OpenMartin et al.
research-article20202020
Original Research
Radon From the Ground into Our
Schools: Parent and Guardian
Awareness of Radon
SAGE Open
January-March 2020: 1 –8
© The Author(s) 2020
https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020914545
DOI: journals.sagepub.com/home/sgo
Kirsten Martin 1 , Rebecca Ryan 2 , Thomas Delaney 1 , David A. Kaminsky 1 ,
Scott J. Neary 1 , Ethan E. Witt 1 , Florence Lambert-Fliszar 1 , Kyle Remy 1 ,
Shawn Sanford 1 , Kathryn Grenoble 1 , and Jan K. Carney 1
Abstract
Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers. Exposure in schools may be harmful to schoolchildren and
staff. However, states differ considerably in their approaches to mandating radon testing and mitigaiton in schools. In this
study, 126 survey responses were received and analyzed from parents of K-12 children in Vermont, USA. Qualitative data
were obtained by interviewing two parents for their views and concerns about radon in schools. Our results showed that
only 51% of parents believed that radon affects the lungs and only 39% identified it as a carcinogen. 91% believed their
children’s schools should act to address elevated radon levels and 87% supported mandated mitigation. These data suggest
that there is already overwhelming support for radon regulation in schools among parents of K-12 children. Parents with
children in elementary school were significantly more likely to support radon testing, mitigation, and legislation than parents
with older children. This suggests that these parents may be strong advocates to encourage legislative action. Parents with
more knowledge about radon were significantly more likely to support radon testing in schools. Educating parents about
exposure to radon at school and its association with lung cancer could strengthen existing community support for legislation
mandating radon testing and mitigation.
Keywords
schools, education, social sciences, law and courts, legal studies, political science, teacher education, health communication,
human communication, communication studies, communication, students
Introduction
Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers
and is the second leading cause of all lung cancers after
smoking (United States Environmental Protection Agency
[U.S. EPA], 2017). Radon is a colorless and odorless radioactive
gas produced by the decay of uranium in rock and soil.
The natural release of radon gas from rock and soil permeates
air, groundwater, and surface water (Agency for Toxic
Substances and Disease Registry, Division of Toxicology
and Human Health Sciences, 2012). The U.S. EPA estimates
that radon is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer–
related deaths per year (U.S. EPA, 2017), and residential
exposure to radon is positively correlated with lung cancer
risk (Darby et al., 2005; Kim et al., 2016; Krewski et al.,
2006; Letourneau et al., 1994; Lubin et al., 2004). Although
less well-documented, the level of exposure to radon in
schools may be harmful to schoolchildren and school staff
(Branco et al., 2016).
Based on the National Radon School Survey, the EPA
estimates that about 19.3% of U.S. schools have at least one
classroom with short-term radon levels at or above 4 pCi/L,
the level at which the EPA recommends mitigation to reduce
radon levels to a safe range (U.S. EPA, Air and Radiation,
1993). However, 37 states in the United States do not have
legislation that mandates monitoring of radon levels in
schools. Of the states with radon legislation, only nine have
laws requiring testing, whereas four others have legislation
describing radon testing as “recommended,” “encouraged,”
or “voluntary” (Gordon et al., 2018). In addition, only five of
1 The University of Vermont, Burlington, USA
2 American Lung Association, Williston, VT, USA
Corresponding Author:
Kirsten Martin, The Robert Larner, M.D. College of Medicine, The
University of Vermont, E-126 Given Medical Building, 89 Beaumont Ave.,
Burlington, VT 05405, USA.
Email: [email protected]
Creative Commons CC BY: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of
the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages
(https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).