Radon Prevention in New Construction in Finland: A Nationwide Sample Survey in 2009
Authored by: H. Arvela, O. Holmgren and H. Reisbacka
Abstract:The building code for radon prevention and the associated practical guidelines were revised in Finland in 2003–2004. Thereafter, preventive measures have become more common and effective and indoor radon concentrations have been markedly reduced. In this study, the indoor radon concentration was measured in 1500 new low-rise residential houses. The houses were randomly selected and represented 7 % of the houses that received building permission in 2006. The average radon concentration of all the houses measured, which were completed in 2006–2008, was 95 Bq m−3, the median being 58 Bq m−3. The average was 33 % lower than in houses completed in 2000–2005. The decrease was 47 % in provinces with the highest indoor radon concentration and 26 % elsewhere in the country. In houses with a slab-on-ground foundation that had both passive radon piping and sealing measures carried out using a strip of bitumen felt in the joint between the foundation wall and floor slab, the radon concentration was on average reduced by 57 % compared with houses with no preventive measures. Preventive measures were taken nationwide in 54 % of detached houses and in provinces with the highest radon concentration in 92 % of houses.
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