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Bill Proposed To Require Radon Testing In Schools
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Rep. Tim Briggs (D-Montgomery) introduced House Bill 2286 to require radon testing in schools, as well as educate and inform parents and guardians of the levels of radon gas in their child’s classroom.
“Radon gas is radioactive, colorless, tasteless and odorless. There is no way of knowing its presence unless the schools test for it.” Rep. Briggs said. “Next to smoking, radon gas inhalation is the leading cause of lung cancer, killing thousands every year. By not taking the simple precautions of testing, it’s possible that we needlessly endanger our children’s lives every day they go to school.”
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, four picocuries – a measurement of radioactivity in the air - is considered to be a dangerous level of radon. If the gas is inhaled, the radon atoms decay in the airways or the lungs. After this occurs, cancerous cells start to develop and spread throughout that tissue.
“Testing for radon contamination is simple and inexpensive,” Rep. Briggs said. “The EPA and DEP have extensive resources available on the dangers of radon gas, and school districts need to step up and take the lead in protecting our kids from this silent killer.”
Some schools have been tested and found to contain radon levels as much as eight times greater than that deemed dangerous. Rep. Briggs said there are some districts that have measures to resolve dangerous levels of radon contamination in their school buildings, but there is no current law requiring all school districts to do so.
According to Rep. Briggs, Bensalem School District discovered in one school that 15 classrooms contained high levels of radon gas after they voluntarily tested their schools. Furthermore, five years ago, Howe Elementary School in Mt. Lebanon had radon levels three times the EPA limits; about 15.6 picocuries per liter in the cafeteria. However, some parents said the school district never told them about it.
“Every parent has the right to know that their child’s classroom is a safe environment, and it is impossible to ensure the safety of their students if schools aren’t testing for this gas,” Rep. Briggs said. “Informing parents of the potential risk of radon in our classrooms provides a means for greater transparency and cooperation between schools and parents regarding potential health threats to our children.”
Rep. Briggs said his legislation would require each school district to contact the parent or guardian of each student in writing, beginning in the 2012-13 school year, regarding radon testing in the school buildings. The notice must include whether or not testing has been conducted, and the highest amount of radon detected in the testing.
If signed into law, all school districts would be required to complete a radon test of each school building by June 30, 2013. Additionally, any newly constructed school buildings would have to be tested within 19 months of the date of occupancy, and any remodeled school buildings would be retested within 19 months of completion of the remodeling.
In addition, the bill would require these tests to be completed every five years from the date of the initial test.
The bill was referred to the House Education Committee for consideration.
For more information on radon, visit DEP's Radon webpage.
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4/2/2012 |
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