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                Auburn University - University Relations
                            (334) 844-9999
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6/8/95                                  Bob Lowry

AUBURN CENTER URGES TESTING FOR RADON GAS IN HOMES, OFFICES

      AUBURN -- Lung cancer-causing radon gas can be largely removed 
from homes for as little as $500, says the director of an Auburn 
University center that provides training in radon detection and eradication.
      A newly released study in the Journal of the National Cancer 
Institute  says up to one in 10 U.S. lung cancer deaths may be caused by 
radon gas  seeping into homes from the ground.
      James Bryant Jr., head of the Auburn-based Southern Regional 
Radon Training  Center, calls radon gas "the invisible killer" because it 
is colorless and odorless.
      The new Cancer Institute study reported that radon may cause more 
than 14,000 lung cancer deaths in the United States, and may be 
responsible for up to 30 percent of lung cancers among nonsmokers.
      "Normally, public health risks are measured as cases per 100,000 
people," Bryant said. "With radon, the risk is measured in cases per 
1,000, almost a thousand times greater."
      Bryant, who is also associate dean for extension in the AU 
College of Engineering, says all homes and offices should be tested for 
the radioactive chemical, which is caused by decaying uranium.
      "Fortunately, you can test your home or office relatively easily 
at a cost of only a few dollars," he says. "If these screening tests 
indicate that your home may have a radon problem, more in-depth testing 
by an Environmental Protection Agency-listed radon measurement specialist 
should be conducted.
      "If the radon levels are higher than EPA's 4 picocuries (measure 
of radiation used for radon) per liter, EPA recommends that you test your 
home again and then mitigate as necessary. Mitigation costs for most 
homes can vary from $500 to $2,000. If you're selling or buying a home, 
have it tested for radon. Testing is the only way to know that there is a 
radon problem."
      Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that escapes from 
underground rocks and soils. Radioactive emissions from radon are known 
to affect the cells lining the lungs when the gas is breathed in.
      An EPA map shows Alabama and Tennessee having the most serious 
radon problems in the Deep South. Nationally, most problem areas are in 
the West, Midwest and Northeast.
      Jan Carrington, EPA project coordinator at the Auburn center, 
says the greatest threat of radon gas in Alabama is  "Zone 1" areas, 
which are mostly in the northern tier of Alabama counties.
      Zone 1 counties are Calhoun, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert, Coosa, 
Franklin, Jackson, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Morgan and 
Talladega. The southern one-third counties in Alabama classified in Zone 
3 are at the least risk.
      The AU-based SRRTC, established in 1990 by EPA, is one of only 
four national training centers in the United States. It serves Alabama, 
Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, 
North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.
      The Auburn center, based in the College of Engineering, works 
with all levels of government, industry and the public through training 
in radon and indoor air quality, examinations and technology transfer.
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june95:AU-radon
      CONTACT: Bryant, 334/844-4370 (jbryant@eng.auburn.edu); or 
Carrington, 334/844-5718 (janc@eng.auburn.edu).

      (For additional information about indoor air quality and radon 
programs, CONTACT: Radon Information Service in Montgomery, 335/272-2797; 
National Radon Hotline, 800/SOS-RADON; Alabama Radon Hotline, 
800/582-1866; or SRRTC, 800/626-2703 or 334/844-5719.)