No enforceable regulations exist to control indoor radon levels—only guidelines and a national goal.
No regulations mandate specific radon levels for indoor residential and school environments—only guidelines for remediation, such as the EPA recommendations and a national goal. EPA based its guidelines not only on risk considerations, but also on technical feasibility. No level at which the risk of exposure to alpha emitters is zero is thought to exist. Many standards and guidelines for radon are being reviewed (Table 3 and Table 4), and changes might occur over time. EPA or state health departments should therefore be consulted for the most up-to-date standards.
The national goal is for indoor radon levels to be as low as those outdoors. About 0.4 pCi/L radon is normally found in outside air.
In October 1988, the Indoor Radon Abatement Act was passed. This act states that the "national long-term goal of the United States with respect to radon levels in buildings is that the air within buildings in the United States should be as free of radon as the ambient air outside of buildings." The act mandates that EPA update its publication, A Citizen's Guide to Radon, and provide a series of action levels indicating the health risk associated with these various levels. The guide will also provide information on the risk to sensitive populations, testing methods, and the cost and feasibility of mi
and provide a series of action levels indicating the health risk associated with these various levels. The guide will also provide information on the risk to sensitive populations, testing methods, and the cost and feasibility of mi