WISCONSIN — High levels of radon were found in an Indigenous Wisconsin community during a University of Wisconsin study.
What You Need To Know
- Over 50% of returned tests in a study of tribal member homes showed high levels of radon
- Researchers said the highest result was 25 times the recommended exposure level for the radioactive gas
- Before the study, researchers estimated that around only 10-20% of homes in that community would have high levels of the substance, since around one in 10 Wisconsin homes have high radon levels
- As a part of the study, researchers also had professional radon mitigation completed for the participants who were affected by high radon levels
Over 50% of returned tests from tribal member homes showed high levels of radon, according to the collaborative study between the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center, the Stockbridge-Munsee Health and Wellness Center and the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of the Mohican Nation.
Researchers said the highest result was 25 times the recommended exposure level for the radioactive gas that occurs naturally from the ground.
Before the study, researchers estimated that around only 10-20% of homes in that community would have high levels of the substance, since around one in 10 Wisconsin homes have high radon levels. However, that percentage proved to be higher.
“This community/academic partnership was successful at radon mitigation in Native communities, where potentially harmful radon was found in 55% of tested homes—some of which had dangerously high levels commensurate to the risk of smoking more than a pack of cigarettes per day,” said Fumiko Chino, a radiation oncologist at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, in a press release.
Radon is most prevalent in upper Midwest states and is the second leading cause of lung cancer…