Please note that the reduced cost radon kits being offered by HPEPH have sold out and are no longer available. Thank you to all residents who purchased the kits, as well as those that have agreed to participate in HPEPH’s Radon Study.

Radon Study Information and Consent

This project is being conducted by the Hastings Prince Edward Public Health (HPEPH) Radon Working Group. You are invited to participate in a study to understand the frequency of high levels of radon in homes in Hastings and Prince Edward Counties.

What is radon?

Radon is a radioactive gas. Radon is formed by decaying uranium, which naturally occurs in rocks and soils. Radon gas can seep into a home through gaps in basement floors and walls. Radon can build up to high levels inside the home.

Radon is colourless and odourless. The only way to find out if a home has radon levels is to test. If radon levels are high, there are many effective ways to lower radon levels in the home.

What are the health effects of radon?

In the open air, radon poses limited health risks. As radon escapes from the soil, it is diluted in the open air. However, in confined spaces such as homes, radon can build up and become a health hazard. Exposure to high levels of radon has been associated with an increased risk of lung cancer. In Canada, radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer after tobacco smoke.

The risk of health effects from radon depends primarily on:

1. Radon concentration
2. Duration of exposure
3. Smoking habits or exposure to second-hand smoke.

Smokers are at significantly higher risk of developing lung cancer when exposed to radon. A non-smoker exposed to radon has a lifetime lung cancer risk of 1 in 20. A smoker NOT exposed to radon has a lifetime lung cancer risk of 1 in 10, whereas a smoker exposed to radon has a lifetime lung cancer risk of 1 in 3.

What is this study about?

The Radon Testing Study in Hastings and Prince Edward Counties is a study being done by HPEPH. The overall goal of the study is to learn more about radon prevalence in the region.

Who can participate?

To be eligible to participate in the study, you must:

• be age 18 or older;
• be able to read and follow instructions in English;
• live in the Hastings and Prince Edward Counties region;
• own the home you live in most of the time;
• have a ground floor or basement in this home;
• not have tenants living in this home;
• not run a business that has customers, clients, colleagues or employees who spend 4 or more hours per day in this home (this includes children in a home daycare);
• not be planning to renovate or sell this home in the next 6 months; and
• not have already tested or currently be testing this home for radon.

Only one person per household can participate in the study.

Participation in the radon study is voluntary and is not required to purchase a test kit from HPEPH. However, there are a limited number of radon test kits available so the kits are given on a first-come, first-served basis.

What will my participation require?

If you choose to participate in this study, you will need to:

1. Give HPEPH your contact information. We will need your phone number, e-mail address and home address.
2. Pick up a radon test kit. Test kits can be picked up from the Belleville, Trenton, Picton or Bancroft HPEPH offices November 10th, November 18th, November 25th, December 2nd or December 9th and the pick up date will depend on when you order your kit. Pick-ups must be done by someone from your household age 18 or older. They will need to show photo identification with a postal code that matches the one you ordered your kit with.
3. Test for radon in your home. We will give you instructions with your kit. The test kit should be set up the day you pick it up. It needs to be placed in the lowest room in your home which you or someone in your household spends 4 or more hours per day. The kit then needs to be left there for at least 91 days. It can’t be moved or touched. You will also be asked to write on a question sheet what day you set up and took down the test kit and where you put it in your home. You may be asked to set up 2 testing kits in your home as part of quality assurance.
4. Mail the test kit directly to Accustar for lab analysis after at least 91 days of testing and by September 30th, 2022 at the latest, for the results to be valid. Test kits expire October 31, 2022. A pre-addressed envelope will be provided, but the homeowner is responsible for the cost of mailing the test kit to Accustar at the end of the test period. The current estimate is $8.15 via Canada Post.
5. Get your radon results from Accustar. If your home tests above health guidelines, we will be available to make recommendations about lowering your radon level and information about how to do so.

Is my participation voluntary?

Being part of this study is up to you. If you do not want to be part of this study, it will not change any of the services you receive from HPEPH.

You can change your mind about being in the study at any time. You can contact the Radon Working Group (contact information below) to leave the study. Once the results have been grouped however, your answers can’t be removed.

Are there any risks to participating in this project?

Since radon is a health risk, it may be concerning to find out that you are living in a home with high levels of radon. However, knowing your home’s radon levels means you can take steps to lower the levels. This will lower the health risk.

The Canadian Real Estate Association says it can cost about $2500-$5,000 to lower radon levels in a home*. The cost of mitigation can vary considerably, and depends on the contractor and the home. As the homeowner, it is up to you to decide if you are going to lower your home’s radon levels. You are responsible for paying for any work done. HPEPH will provide you with recommendations based on your home’s radon levels. This includes information about lowering radon levels and where to find a licensed contractor.

In real estate, radon levels above health guidelines are considered a defect. If selling your home in the future, potential buyers must be told of defects you know about, including high radon levels. This is required by law. If you have work done to lower the radon levels in your home, you will need to re-test to make sure it worked. You will still need to tell potential buyers about the high radon levels, because any system to lower radon needs to be left in place and maintained.

HPEPH will not provide test kits for re-testing after work is completed to lower radon levels.

Are there any benefits to participating in this project?

Exposure to radon is a health risk. Radon can only be found through testing. We will give you recommendations and information about how to lower your home’s radon levels.

This study will also help HPEPH understand the risk to HPEPH residents from radon and how to best help residents understand their risks.

Will I be compensated for my participation?

No compensation will be provided but kits are being offered at a reduced cost ($15.00 versus regular cost of $30-$50).

Privacy & Confidentiality

Your data: (your ordering details, consent (opt-in or opt-out), and your home’s radon result will be linked. All your data is confidential and only study investigators will have access. Data will be reported grouped so that no one person can be identified.

Ethical Research

This study has adapted a KFL&A Public Health study from 2018 which was reviewed for ethics compliance by the Queen’s University Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board.

Contact

If you have any questions about this study, please contact the Radon Working Group, HPEPH at 613-966-5500 ext. 677 or radon@hpeph.ca.

Opt-In Consent

On the checkout page, you will be asked if you wish to opt-in to the radon study. If you choose to opt-in, you acknowledge the following:

1. I have read the above information and meet the eligibility criteria.
2. I understand the possible harms and benefits of participating in this study.
3. I understand that my household’s participation in this study is voluntary. I may withdraw from this study at any time by contacting the Radon Working Group at 613-966-5500 ext. 677 or radon@hpeph.ca. My decision to participate in the study will not affect the services I receive from HPEPH.
4. I understand that every effort will be made to maintain the confidentiality of my home’s radon result now and in the future. Only study team members at HPEPH will have access to this information. The results may be published in reports by HPEPH or in professional journals or presented at scientific conferences, but any such presentations will be of grouped findings and will never breach individual confidentiality. If I am interested, I am entitled to a copy of the report on the findings.
5. I understand that the Queen’s University Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board (HSREB) may review the study files for quality assurance purposes.
6. I am aware that if I have any questions or concerns during or after my participation I may contact Radon Working Group, radon@hpeph.ca. I am also aware that I may contact Dr. Albert Clark, Chair of the Queen’s University Health Sciences and Affiliated Teaching Hospitals Research Ethics Board at 613-533-6081 if I have any concerns about this project or my rights as a participant.

References

*CREA. A Homeowner’s Guide to Radon. (nd). https://www.crea.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/A_Homeowners_Guide_to_Radon_CREA.pdf