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Radon in the Guilderland
Central School District:
Information for parents, staff and community members
What is radon
and where does it come from?
What are the
health risks of radon?
Why was Guilderland
High School tested for radon, and what were the results of
that testing?
Will students and
staff need to be relocated from areas where elevated levels
of radon were found?
What is the
district’s plan for responding to the results of the initial
screening at GHS?
What about
the other district school buildings? Will they be tested for
radon?
How does radon enter
school buildings?
How are
schools tested for radon?
Who can I contact
for more information?
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What is radon and where does it come from?
“Radon is a radioactive noble gas that
comes from the decay of radium in the soil. Radon is a
colorless, odorless, invisible gas that can only be detected
through the use of proper equipment and protocols. Chronic
exposure to elevated levels of radon has been linked to an
increased incidence of lung cancer in underground miners.”
(Taken from New York State Department of Health Radon
Frequently Asked Questions – March 2000)
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What are the health risks of radon?
“There are no immediate symptoms from
exposures to radon. Based on an updated assessment of risk
for radon in homes, radon in indoor air is estimated to
cause about 21,000 lung cancer deaths each year in the
United States. Smokers are at higher risk of developing
radon-induced lung cancer. Lung cancer is the only health
effect which has been definitively linked with radon
exposure. Lung cancer would usually occur years (5-25) after
exposure. There is no evidence that other respiratory
diseases, such as asthma, are caused by radon exposure and
there is no evidence that children are at any greater risk
of radon induced lung cancer than adults.” (Taken from
Environmental Protection Agency Radon Frequently Asked
Questions – January 2008)
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Why was Guilderland High School tested for
radon, and what were the results of that testing?
The Environmental Protection Agency
encourages schools to test for radon and has established
recommended strategies and methods for testing school
buildings. According to the EPA, only about 20 percent of
schools nationwide have completed some radon testing to
date.
Guilderland considers the health and safety of our students
and staff to be our highest priority. In keeping with our
commitment to the well-being of our school community, recent
radon testing at the High School was conducted as part of a
routine air-quality check in accordance with the district’s
health and safety program.
The Guilderland High School facility was
divided into two testing phases by the district’s Health and
Safety consultant: in the first phase that was conducted
this past winter, approximately one half of the building was
tested including the side of the facility that incorporates
Business, Science, Math and Physical Education. The
screening test found levels of radon in most areas to be
below the EPA’s recommended guideline of 4 picoCuries per
liter (4 pC/L). Some areas were found to have radon levels
above the EPA’s recommended guideline during the screening
test:
• Media Office
• Auditorium
• East Gym
• Wrestling room and coaches’ room
• A few science classrooms
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Will students and staff need to be
relocated from areas where elevated levels of radon were
found?
No. The recommended guideline from the
Environmental Protection Agency is not a permissible
exposure level, but rather a level which should trigger a
response by the school district for further investigation
and mitigation. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines
for schools do not call for the relocation of staff and
students at the levels found in the initial screening at
Guilderland High School.
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What is the district’s plan for responding
to the results of the initial screening at GHS?
School officials are taking immediate
steps to assess levels of radon at Guilderland High School.
The district is working with risk management, architectural,
and engineering companies—Needham Risk Management, CS Arch,
and Camroden Associates—to conduct diagnostic testing to
evaluate the findings of the screening test and determine if
mitigation is necessary.
If mitigation activities are deemed
necessary, a plan will be prepared by a design team and
submitted to the school district’s architectural/engineering
firm and submitted to the State Education Department for
approval. Any installation would be performed by a certified
contractor. Follow up testing would occur after the
installation of the mitigation system and the results would
be reviewed by the New York State Department of Health to
ensure the adequacy of the mitigation system/activities.
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What about the other district school
buildings? Will they be tested for radon?
As part of the district’s health and
safety program, the second half of the High School and the
balance of the school district’s buildings will be mapped
and screened for the presence of elevated levels of radon.
This testing will occur in the beginning of the school year
once the heating season has started. The Environmental
Protection Agency recommends that testing occur in colder
months of the year (usually October through March).
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How does radon enter school buildings?
Radon gas typically moves up through the
ground to the air above, and into buildings through cracks
and other holes in the foundation.
“Many factors contribute to the entry of
radon gas into a school building. Schools in nearby areas
can have significantly different radon levels from one
another. As a result, school officials can not know if
elevated levels of radon are present without testing. The
following factors determine why some schools have elevated
radon levels and others do not:
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The concentration of radon in the
soil gas (source strength) and permeability of the soil
(gas mobility) under the school;
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The structure and construction of
the school building; and
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The type, operation and maintenance
of the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC)
system.
Many schools are constructed on
adjoining floor slabs which permit radon gas to enter
through construction and expansion joints between the slabs.
Other features, such as the presence of a basement area,
crawl spaces, utility tunnels, subslab HVAC ducts, cracks or
other penetrations in the slab (e.g. around pipes) also
provide areas for radon to enter indoor spaces.” (Taken from
The US Environmental Protection Agency’s Radon
Measurement in Schools)
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How are schools tested for radon?
One of the established testing methods
from the EPA incorporates a two-step process involving an
initial screening with follow-up measurements in areas where
radon is found above 4 picoCuries per liter (4 pC/L), the
EPA’s recommended guideline. The screenings that were
conducted at Guilderland High School were performed using
charcoal canisters placed in classrooms and areas that are
frequently occupied and which are in contact with the
ground, or are above crawl spaces, or which are below grade.
The canisters are left out for several
days and are then sealed and sent to a laboratory for
analysis. The laboratory results are reviewed by the New
York State’s Department of Health and the district’s Health
and Safety Consultant in order to determine any necessary
follow-up.
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Who can I contact for more information?
The district will provide additional
information to parents, staff, and community members as it
becomes available. If you have any questions, please contact
Assistant Superintendent for Business Neil Sanders at
456-6200, ext. 3125.
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