Recent investigations have shown that the Iowa Department of Public Health has not been doing radon testing, as demanded by law, due to lack of funds.
State legislation demands that the Iowa Department of Health conduct radon testing and inspect radon-removal systems from basements in homes, due to Radon's radioactivity and health hazard to humans when inhaled. These tests have not been done in hundreds of homes recently.
Radon is an odorless and colorless gas that is usually found in the basement of a home, after seeping in from the ground. It is classified as a class A carcinogen, because it is found to kill nearly 400 people in Iowa each year. Other carcinogens in this category include more well-known hazards like arsenic and asbestos.
Radon can be breathed in when a person enters a basement that contains the odorless and colorless gas, which causes lung cancer and damage to the DNA. It is a major concern because Radon is thought to be the second leading cause of lung cancer death. People rarely survive lung cancer contracted from radon.
Even though radon is such a dangerous material, the Iowa Department of Public Health still does not conduct as many tests as demanded by law and needed according to the amount of homes in Iowa City.
The legal requirements regarding radon testing are not upheld, for the most part, because funds simply cannot keep up with the amount of systems to be tested annually.
Investigations suggested the budget and staff are not available to fix this problem right now, and obtaining them is yet another long, costly process. There are attempts being made to remedy the problem, but as of now, they are still ineffective, and Radon testing will continue to be underdone in Iowa.
State legislation demands that the Iowa Department of Health conduct radon testing and inspect radon-removal systems from basements in homes, due to Radon's radioactivity and health hazard to humans when inhaled. These tests have not been done in hundreds of homes recently.
Radon is an odorless and colorless gas that is usually found in the basement of a home, after seeping in from the ground. It is classified as a class A carcinogen, because it is found to kill nearly 400 people in Iowa each year. Other carcinogens in this category include more well-known hazards like arsenic and asbestos.
Radon can be breathed in when a person enters a basement that contains the odorless and colorless gas, which causes lung cancer and damage to the DNA. It is a major concern because Radon is thought to be the second leading cause of lung cancer death. People rarely survive lung cancer contracted from radon.
Even though radon is such a dangerous material, the Iowa Department of Public Health still does not conduct as many tests as demanded by law and needed according to the amount of homes in Iowa City.
The legal requirements regarding radon testing are not upheld, for the most part, because funds simply cannot keep up with the amount of systems to be tested annually.
Investigations suggested the budget and staff are not available to fix this problem right now, and obtaining them is yet another long, costly process. There are attempts being made to remedy the problem, but as of now, they are still ineffective, and Radon testing will continue to be underdone in Iowa.
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