Nevada Certified Radon Measurement Providers
Professional Listing:
Two organizations, the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists-National Radon Proficiency Program (AARST-NRPP) and the National Radon Safety Board (NRSB), maintain professional listings of radon mitigation and measurement service providers who have had a specific training and/or passed a written test on measuring or reducing radon in homes or other buildings.
The Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health and the Nevada Radon Education Program does not endorse or recommend any company or individual over another.
For more information, contact the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension Radon Hotline 888-RADON10 (888-723-6610) or the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health, 775-687-7550.
Retesting the Home:
Even if your test result is below 4 pCi/l, you should consider retesting your home every two years.
EPA also recommends retesting for the following reasons:
- Living patterns change: If you begin living in a lower level of your home, such as a new den in the basement, you should retest your home on that level.
- If you finish or renovate an unfinished area, you should test your home before starting the project and after the project is finished.
- Earthquakes and ground shifts: A change in the ground beneath or around your home can open passageways in the soil allowing radon gas to enter your home.
- Foundation shifts: As a home grows older, the foundation can shift; cracks and other openings can occur, allowing radon gas to enter the home.
- After mitigation: If your home has been mitigated for radon, you should test again to make sure the radon mitigation system works. The system should be tested 24 hours after the mitigation system has been installed. You should also retest your home every two years after a mitigation to make sure the system is functioning properly.
How Radon Is Measured:
EPA and the U.S. Surgeon General strongly recommend that you fix your home if you have 4 pCi/l or more of radon in your home. There is no known safe level of exposure to radon since lung cancer can result from low exposures to radon. Exposure to radon at the EPA Action Level of 4 pCi/l poses a significant health risk. EPA based the 4 pCi/l Action Level on four factors: the health risk involved; the effectiveness of available mitigation technologies; cost-effectiveness; and, the goal set by Congress to reduce indoor radon levels to as close to the outdoor level as possible. EPA’s estimate of radon-related lung cancer deaths is based on the population of the U.S. exposed to the national average indoor radon concentration of 1.3 pCi/l over a lifetime. Existing mitigation technologies allow the radon level in most homes to be reduced to 2 pCi/l or less.
Radon is a radioactive, cancer-causing gas, and any amount of radon can pose a health risk. The higher the concentration, the greater the risk. Determining whether to do something about any amount of radon is a personal decision and should be based upon risk, health and financial considerations.
If test results indicate an elevated level of radon (at or above the EPA Action Level of 4 pCi/l), it requires further attention. The higher the initial short-term test result, the more certain you should be to take further action.
The Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health and Nevada Radon Education Program recommend you only use radon professionals who are certified through one of the two national voluntary radon proficiency programs — the National Environmental Health Association-National Radon Proficiency Program (NEHA-NRPP) and the National Radon Safety Board (NRSB)