January is National Radon Action Month, and San Juan Basin Public Health will hold free radon testing workshops and provide free radon kits to participants.
About half of Colorado homes have radon gas levels that exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s action level. In Colorado, radon is estimated to cause 500 lung cancer deaths each year.
Radon gas has no odor or taste, is not visible and occurs naturally in the soil. Radon enters homes and buildings through small openings. The U.S. Surgeon General lists radon exposure as the second leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S.
The Colorado State Board of Health has declared January as Radon Action Month, and state environmental officials hope residents will test their homes.
Radon workshops will be held at:
6 p.m. Tuesday at Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association, 230 Port Ave., ing Pagosa Springs. Register at www.eventbrite.com/e/86872549133.6 p.m. Wednesday at San Juan Basin Public Health, 281 Sawyer Drive, Ste. 300. Register at www.eventbrite.com/e/87349178745.Additional workshops will be offered in Durango, Bayfield and Pagosa Springs in late January and February. Workshop participants will receive as many free, short-term radon test kits as they need and instructions to use them correctly. Advanced registration is encouraged.
For more information and an updated workshop schedule, visit www.sjbpublichealth.org/radon or call 335-2060.
