One in 10 lung cancer deaths are probably due to radon, writes Dick Ahlstrom, Science Editor.
The Government spent an estimated €1.4 million on a hopeless legal case in the European Court of Justice against Sellafield that now has us in trouble with the EU. Yet it is reluctant to put extra money into a form of disease prevention that could save the State much more than this over time.
About one in 10 of the 1,500 lung cancer deaths here each year are probably caused by exposure in the home to radon, a naturally occurring radioactive gas.
These deaths are easily preventable (i) if the homeowner knows the radon is there after tests and (ii) if he or she carries out simple remedial works to remove the gas.
Some years ago the Government considered offering some form of grant to help people pay for these remedial works. The proposal was on again, off again throughout 2002, but then left the radar screen.
The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) does radon testing, provides public information on the subject, explains what remedial works can be done and has lobbied over the years for State support for remedial works.
"My understanding is that everything is \ tight, it is off the agenda," said Dr Tony Colgan, principal scientific officer with the RPII.
Current Government thinking on the subject reflects the belief that, like a leaky roof, dodgy plumbing or faulty wiring, getting the radon fixed is a matter for the homeowner, according to sources.
Yet the latest figures on radon in the home, issued yesterday by the RPII, make for worrying reading, not only because they highlight more people at risk from excessive radon levels.
The study was undertaken after a survey last year identified a home near Castleisland, Co Kerry, with a spectacularly high radon level of 49,000 becquerels of radiation per cubic metre of air. The Government's safety limit is set at 200 becquerels.
The 2,500 householders in the Castleisland area were encouraged to have radon tests done, at €40 a test, to inform themselves about any health risk. Less than 17 per cent of householders bothered, despite the fact that all homes in the area could potentially be at risk of dangerously high radon levels.
Dr Colgan was at a loss to explain the poor take-up, but said it was comparable with the low response for testing seen in other high radon areas. People don't seem to be bothered by this invisible threat.
He is not sure that the State paying for the test would have any impact on this. "It being free isn't the issue, it is understanding you need to have it done," he said.
Intervention by the State, either with free testing to help identify a risk, or with support for remedial works, could offer a way to reduce later healthcare costs, however. Patients who develop lung cancer require long-term, costly treatments, yet fewer people would get the disease if the radon risk could be reduced.
The Government has become involved in other areas associated with radon, notably building codes. Since July 1998 radon prevention measures must be built into all new dwellings and long- stay residential buildings. In many cases plastic sheeting on the concrete flooring is sufficient.
Workers are protected from occupational exposures since May 2000 under the Radiological Protection Act 1991 (Ionising Radiation) Order, 2000. The RPII is also surveying workplaces and has been in touch with employers' groups such as IBEC, Dr Colgan said.
The Department of Education and Science brought in a remediation programme to reduce radon levels in schools after an RPII national survey of 3,432 revealed frightening levels in some. One Waterford classroom had a reading of almost 5,000 becquerels.
The RPII runs a very good website (www.rpii.ie) explaining radon, it publishes brochures and other material to help people understand the subject and also runs information meetings. This public information assault doesn't seem to be hitting the mark, given the response to testing in Castleisland, Dr Colgan acknowledged.
Financial intervention from the Government to coax people along might improve the situation. It is likely that such an investment would provide dividends later in lower healthcare costs and less human suffering.