Tue, 26 May, 2015 12:33:28 AM FTimes – STT Report, May 26  Radon meter at a house in Espoo, Finland. Radon is a radioactive, colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas. File Photo – Lehtikuva. Finnish awareness of the harmful effects of radon gas has improved. Older homes are repaired, and new homes are protected when built. Yet, there remain about 60,000 homes in need of repair.
In those homes, radon concentrations exceed the maximum limit set for old buildings, or 400 becquerels per cubic meter.
“About 50,000 of these are single-family houses, and the rest are apartments,” said Inspector Tuukka Turtiainen of the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK).
Repairs are already underway for approximately 5,000 homes.
According to the building regulations, a workplace must be repaired if the radon exceeds 400 becquerels per cubic meter. Similarly, the maximum should not exceed in apartment buildings or single-family houses. However, Turtiainen points out that the latter is only a recommendation.
“If an apartment building registers the lower maximum limit, and the residents request repairs during a housing committee meeting, it would be strange if the repairs didn’t happen.”
Health authorities may also request repairs from the building owners on behalf of residents, mentions Inspector Olli Holmgren of STUK.
In new homes, the maximum allowable limit of radon is 200 becquerels per cubic meter.
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