$20 radon detectors available this month - public info meeting set for Sydenham on Nov. 21

Jeff Green | Nov 08, 2019

Thanks to a bulk purchase, residents from all corners of Frontenac and Lennox and Addington Counties are being encouraged to pick up a radon detection unit from Public Health offices in Kingston, Sharbot Lake, Cloyne and Napanee.

The units come with detailed instructions about where they should be set up. They need to remain in place for over 90 days, before they are returned to a Public Health office, to be shipped to a lab in order to be analysed.

The winter, when windows are closed and heating systems are on, is the best time of the year to determine whether radon levels in a home are within acceptable limits, or pose a health risk. Long term exposure to radon is the second most significant cause of lung cancer after smoking tobacco, and lung cancer is the most-deadly cancer.

“We decided to make the tests available throughout the month of November so they can be in place in people’s homes for 90 days before being returned to us on or after March 2nd. This provides for 91 days from November 29th, the last day that they will be available,” said Erin Hayes, a Public Health promoter who has been central to the radon mitigation strategy that Public Health has undertaken over the last year.

The longer the tests are in place, the more complete the results will be, so people are encouraged to pick them up and get them in place early in the month.

The tests will be sent off to a testing lab once they are turned in to any Public Health office in KFL&A. The lab will report the results, by email, only to the resident.

“We will not be receiving the results,” said Hayes, “this is not part of a survey or a study, it is a service we are offering to residents.”

The testing kits have been available for a short time but there were quite a few picked up in the first couple of days: over 700 in Kingston, 75 in Napanee, and 25 in Sharbot Lake on the very first day.

Erin Hayes said that the numbers are being monitored carefully, because Public Health will continue to order kits through the month, so they are still available up until the 29th.

“We encourage residents to pick them up early in the month,” said Hayes, “because the longer they are in place the better, and it also avoids any chance that they will not be available.”

In Sydenham, on November 21, South Frontenac Township together with KFL&A Public Health, will be hosting a Radon Information Session starting at 6:30 pm in the Council Chambers. A speaker from Health Canada will begin the presentation at 7:00 pm followed by any questions from attendees. The Township’s Chief Building Official will also be available for any questions. The public can buy the radon kits before or after the session (cash only).