ROCKVILLE, Md. (ABC7) -- A substance linked to cancer has been
detected in dangerous amounts inside dozens of Montgomery County
classrooms.According to a five-page report obtained by ABC7 News, 28 of MCPS' 205 schools have dangerous radon levels.
Read and watch the full story at:
http://wjla.com/news/local/dangerous-levels-of-radon-found-in-28-mcps-schools
I get that the real issue with the PCMC is schools, but the real problem here is that homes are FAR more of a danger to kids than their schools. Any home near the schools reading high are surely also to have high levels of radon, and ALL houses in general should be tested to ensure that they're not in a high radon concentration area as this gas will in fact be in the basements of those homes. The chance of exposure to radon for ALL members of a family, but especially the children, is vastly greater in homes than it is in schools.
ReplyDeleteI can't find anything which tells me exactly where the readings in the schools were being taken. That said, if the limits are in excess of the EPA recommended limit then a radon abatement system should be installed, regardless of where the readings are taken. As indicated above, my point with "where" is the radon is tested for is related to the fact that radon comes into a building through the basement and stays in the basement, where kids are not expected to be found in the average school, and if you're testing in the basement then child exposure (though certainly not worker exposer, in particular maintenance staff) is going to be low even if the readings are found to be high. On the other hand kids are often found and hang out in the basements of their homes.
Schools do not have "basements." Are you imagining a rec room beneath classrooms?
DeleteSchools have classrooms. According to this MCPS information, they tested classrooms. The high readings were in classrooms or rooms used by teachers. One of the highest readings was found at the outdoor education centers where all middle school students spend two nights for outdoor education.
Some schools have basements. Twinbrook ES for example has at least several classrooms (4th, 5th, 6th grades) located on a basement level. The classrooms have windows to the outside, but the other half of the wing is (bathrooms. aux rooms, etc.) are below grade. It would be interesting to see the radon levels The wing (on Google maps:
Deletehttps://www.google.com/maps/place/Twinbrook+Elementary+School/@39.0693784,-77.119763,87m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0xea1220d1ddf26b30
They are testing rooms. in some cases, basements if the school has basements. Some kindergarten rooms had high levels of radon. Ask your school for the report. Please let us know if you receive it.
DeleteThese tests were in classrooms. I talked to building services last week and the report shows how many classrooms were tested and how many were high. For example, Fallsmead ES says 26/42 and a range. That means 26 rooms were high. The director of building services sent me the report for our school and my son's first grade classroom was at the highest level for the school in 2012 of 5.3. Their protocol says to retest but they never did it. The EPA, however, recommends remediation for any level over 4.0. They need to answer questions on why they did not notify the public and give us a choice if we wanted our kids to be there. SOmeone needs to lose their job!
ReplyDeletesuggest you contact the EPA.
DeleteDani D, one question, when you spoke with the teacher, who spends all day in that classroom, what was the response?
DeleteTeachers were completely unaware that they were hige levels of radon! Teachers spend many more hours per day in the classrooms than the children do...
DeleteDani D - could you please provide the Fallsmead report you received to Parents Coalition to post? I believe 1st grade classrooms at Fallsmead are in the new addition which was built in the last 10 years. It would be helpful to see what level of information is included in a school specific report. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThis is a tragedy. Parents should be outraged. You cannot turn back the clock when your child gets cancer- that could have been prevented!
ReplyDeleteI just spoke to MCPS after our principal was unable to comment. Apparently, a communication will be issued to parents, today. Why not just fix the problem? Radon is incredibly cheap and easy to mitigate.
ReplyDelete