Editorial: It’s long past time we test our schools for radon
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Radon is poison.
It occurs naturally in the world, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t dangerous. It’s a gas that can seep up from the soil. It can filter through the water. It can be found in the bricks and boards of a building.
You won’t see it. It has no color. You won’t smell it. It has no scent and no taste. It’s the kind of thing you find because you are looking for it — which is definitely something you want to do because radon is radioactive.
Does that make you think about cancer? It should. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, breathing in radon is a significant cancer risk. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put it second only to smoking in the cause of lung cancer, the deadliest form of cancer.
That is why people test for radon. You can buy a test kit online. You can pick one up at the hardware store or at a big box retailer while you pick up milk and bread and motor oil. It’s an easy process that can give you answers. Mitigating radon with a reduction system is even fairly cost effective, as long as you know the problem is there.
But we don’t think about a gas like this being prevalent in public buildings. Those buildings are built to very specific demands. They have boxes to check off and requirements to meet. Of course, they would be safe from a radioactive carcinogen, right?
Not always. In Pennsylvania, schools are not required to test for radon.
On Monday, Women for a Healthy Environment were urging lawmakers to change that. It is ludicrous that it has not happened yet.
In the last decade, this request has been put before the Legislature repeatedly. Specifically, it has happened five times. Five times nothing has been done.
Pennsylvania isn’t shy about testing things. We require that cars be inspected every year — for both safety and emissions. We test babies in hospitals for certain genetic conditions to make sure they are safe to go home. Kids are tested constantly from the minute they enter school until they pass the Keystone exams that are required for graduation.
So why not the schools themselves? Why is this the line that lawmakers refuse to cross?
The state owes it to every child who is compelled by law to go to school to make sure those schools are as safe as possible. Schools should be tested for radon. This should not go another year, let alone another 10.