Status of EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) Radon Mitigation Demonstration Program

摘要

The paper discusses the portion of EPA's radon reduction technology development/demonstration program dealing with the study of reduction methods for existing and new construction houses. The EPA program has as its objective the development and demonstration of cost-effective radon reduction techniques applicable to existing and new construction houses, all housing substructure types, a wide range of house design and construction features, a range of initial radon concentrations, a variety of radon mitigation approaches, and a scope that is national. The program, which started on a small scale in 1984, is divided into four major areas: methods for radon entry diagnosis and reduction performance testing, reduction methods for existing houses, reduction methods for new houses, and program support and information transfer. After 1 year of study, a matrix was developed to try to systematize a very complex problem. As a result of the development of the matrix, it appears that at least 600 houses will need to be studied to cover all the variables to a satisfactory degree, making the mitigation of essentially any housing type possible. The number will be studied over a period of 5-8 years.