' No excuse for not protecting people ': Missouri ' s lax radon regulations
' No excuse for not protecting people ': Missouri ' s lax radon regulations
By Srijita Datta and Claudia Levens Apr 27 , 2023
On the day that would have been Gloria Linnertz and her husband ’ s 32nd anniversary , Illinois passed its first and only radon bill unanimously .
As founder of Citizens for Radioactive Radon Reduction , Linnertz dedicated her life to raising awareness about radon after she lost her husband 17 years ago to stage four lung cancer .
Radon — an invisible and odorless gas which naturally emanates from soil and seeps through flooring — is the second leading cause of lung cancer , responsible for 21,000 deaths in the U . S . every year . Lack of testing masks radon cancer threat in Missouri
As radon decays , radioactive particles are released . If inhaled into the lungs , those particles can attack the cells . It ’ s the first leading cause of lung cancer for non-smokers , and among those who do smoke , radon significantly compounds the risk of lung cancer .