Hosted by Public Health Ontario
Radon is a colourless, odourless, and tasteless carcinogenic gas formed during the natural radioactive decay of uranium in rock and soil. Radon gas quickly dilutes in outdoor air but can accumulate within indoor spaces where long-term exposure can lead to the development of lung cancer. Radon exposure is the second leading environmental cause of lung cancer in Canada and the leading environmental cause among non-smokers.
Many organizations have done some degree of testing of indoor radon levels, including federal and provincial public health agencies, research groups, and private testing firms. This PHO Rounds will present on the BC Radon Data Repository (BCRDR), an ongoing aggregation of BC radon measurement data from volunteer contributing organizations to provide robust centralized surveillance. To date, the BCRDR holds over 40,000 measurements from 19 data contributors. External parties make use of BCRDR data through the BC Radon Map or via collaborations with the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC).
Presenter(s): Dr. David McVea, Dr. Anne-Marie Nicol, and Jeffrey Trieu