Washington State Outreach Approaches for Radon in Schools

Washington State Outreach Approaches for Radon in Schools

Washington State Department of Health provides information and guidance on radon in schools. The department discusses topics on its website such as radon characteristics and action levels, health effects, building design, testing and radon awareness.

In support of the radon in schools website, the department has a WTN On the Go web-mapping for radon, geology layers and child care facilities and schools. It explains that the geology layers are for reference but the only way to determine radon levels is by testing.

This map shows three radon risk zones based on the underlying geology (both bedrock and soils). These are shown as “high, medium and guarded.” You can also select a Feature map layer from the menu that shows you where K-12 schools are located. The test result summary is for the census tract (an area smaller than a zip code, usually having a population between 4,000-8,000 people). The department selected the tract approach to show data for because the boundaries are stable for 10 years. School layers that may be selected are “child care facilities” and “schools.”

See the Radon in Schools website at https://doh.wa.gov/community-and-environment/schools/radon