Radon gas comes from the natural radioactive decay of radium and uranium found in the soil. The amount of radon in the soil depends on complex soil chemistry that varies from one house to the next. Radon levels in the soil range from a few pico curies per liter of air (pCi/L) to several thousands of pCi/L. There is no known safe level of exposure to radon. The Environmental Protection Agency recommends that you fix your home if testing shows levels over 3.9 pCi/L.
The amount of radon that escapes from the soil to enter the house depends on the weather, soil porosity, soil moisture, and the suction within the house. It is present to some degree in practically every home and work place in the United States. You can’t see it, smell it, taste it, or feel it and this makes radon exceedingly dangerous.
Radon is the #1 cause of lung cancer among non- smokers. Overall, it is second only to smoking in causing lung cancer, killing over 20,000 people a year–over 2,900 among people who have never smoked.
We should repeat–There is no known safe level of exposure to radon. The Environmental Protection Agency strongly recommends that you fix your home if testing shows levels over 3.9 pCi/L.