About a year ago I had a client who is
relocating from California to Miami Beach. It was moving to the 20th
floor condominium and insisted on a radon inspection. I questioned
his motivation and reasoning behind the inspection since typically
radon detection is done at the lowest level of a home. I found out
that he was a writer for "Oprah" magazine, and wrote articles
regarding health and medicine. He insisted that radon could be
detected in building materials and he needed peace of mind.
Now I have never been one to turn away money, but I always look
for my client's best interest. I would have never suggested a radon
inspection in a high-rise condominium, yet here was a man obviously
much more educated than I in this matter so I had to do some
homework.
It seems that my client was right. There is a large controversy
about radon in building materials to include concrete slabs, and
stone countertops (to include granite, marble, and slate).
Just to give you a little background about what radon really is;
radon is an invisible gas emitted from uranium deposits. Depending
on where you live in the United States, their radon levels vary. You
can go to the www.EPA.gov website and click the radon map to see
if you live in a high concentrated area. Believe it or not
Miami-Dade County has medium to moderate levels of radon.
The EPA suggested every home be tested for radon, yet few people
do tests are home for radon.
Radon is the #1 cause of lung cancer among non-smokers, according to
EPA estimates. Overall, radon is the second leading cause of
lung cancer. Radon is
responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year.
About 2,900 of these deaths occur among people who have never
smoked. It is estimated that radon is responsible for 10% of
lung cancers in the United States.
The untimely deaths of Peter Jennings and Dana Reeve have raised
public awareness about lung cancer, especially among people who have
never smoked. From the time of diagnosis, between 11 and 15 percent
of those afflicted will live beyond five years, depending upon
demographic factors. In many cases lung cancer can be prevented;
this is especially true for radon.
Solid Surface, The Journal of the Solid Surface Industry
(Volume 1 Number 1) recently published an article entitled "Granite
& Radon". The introduction to the article stated "Scientific
research poses disturbing questions about the safety of granite
countertops" and copies of this article have circulated around the
stone industry raising questions about radon gas emissions from
granite countertops.
Believe me when I tell you, the Marble Institute of America was
quick to make a rebuttal to this article. Some websites claim there
is no radon emitted at all from granite countertops, however the
Marble Institute of America did state in their rebuttal "the
maximum contact radiation level that you would receive over one year
if you were to sit on
countertop all the time would be about one quarter of the annual
radiation dose from all sources. If you were just a few
inches away from the granite (e.g. when doing the dishes), then the
dose would be too low to measure.
Radiation is all around us - in the air we breathe, in the
water we drink, in the soil and rock we stand on, and in the sun's
rays we like to bask in! Added to this is the radiation we get from
man-made sources, such as X-rays, medical treatments, building
materials and cigarette smoke."
The Marble Institute at America further states, "All rocks have a small
amount of radioactivity in them due to the presence of minerals that
contain radioactive elements uranium (U), thorium (Th) and
potassium- 40 (40K). Because granite typically contains more of
these elements than most other rocks, it will be more radioactive
than a slate or marble. All of the minerals in
granite contain some radioelements; the white or pink feldspars
contain 40K, the black biotites and horn-blendes contain 40K, U and
Th, and the small inclusions of minerals such as zircon, apatite,
sphene, etc. contain the most U and Th."
This brings me to the simple question, "does a granite countertop
emit radon"? Granted, I'm not a scientist or geologists, but based
on the rebuttal that the Marble Institute of America gave to the
Solid Surface magazine article, I would say yes.. to some degree.
To examine this question further let's look at the state of Iowa.
"Iowa has the highest average radon concentrations in the nation
due to significant
glaciation that ground the granitic rocks from the Canadian Shield
and deposited it as soils making up the rich Iowa
farmland. Many cities within the state, such as Iowa City have
passed requirements for radon resistant construction in all new
homes." Source: Wikipedia
The danger of radon
exposure in dwellings was discovered in 1984 with the
case of Stanley Watras, an employee at the Limerick nuclear power
plant in Pennsylvania. Watras set off the radiation alarms on his
way into work for two weeks straight while authorities searched for
the source of the contamination. They were shocked to find that the
source was astonishingly high levels of radon, around 100,000 Bq/m�
(2,700 pCi/L), in his house's basement and it was not related to the
nuclear plant. The
risks associated with living in his house were estimated to be
equivalent to smoking 135 packs of cigarettes every
day. Source: Wikipedia
So in conclusion, is your house killing you? Typically, for less
than $500 this question can be answered in 48 -72 hours with a
simple radon test. What
is your health or your tenant's health worth to you?
For More Information about Radon visit: www.EPA.gov. You may also contact us at
1-866-899-MOLD (6653) or visit our website www.MoldTruth.com.
