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Despite all of the hubbub about Iowa, in particular the influence of religious activism in presidential politics, one fundamental (as opposed to fundamentalist) characteristic of the state that is rarely mentioned is that it is the heartland for home environmental radon gas exposure. I only became clued in to this through my recent service on a National Academies of Sciences (NAS) panel whose work included issues of radon's adverse health effects.
A key resource on this topic for me was a fellow panel member, Dr. William Field. A researcher based at the University of Iowa, Bill is a U.S. leader in studying radon's health risks, with key observations coming out of the experience of his fellow Hawkeye state citizens. Their rate of lung cancer is higher than what it should be based on standard smoking risks. Aside from cigarette smoking (both direct and secondhand exposure), there are a number of other causes of lung cancer that have been established. Radon is the clearest example of such causes and Field's research has helped show that lung cancer rates are linked to household radon levels.
Radon comes from natural geological sources and can be the greatest residential problem in poorly ventilated basements where the gas seeps in form the ground. Because of the magnitude of the problem, household radon control has become a major priority for the United Sates Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA web site includes a map of where radon is the biggest problem as well as guidelines for home radon measurement and interventions that have been shown to effectively reduce levels (http://www.epa.gov/radon/).
It may not be surprising that concern regarding radiation effects in general and radon in particular is not particularly a part of the conservative weltanschauung. Perhaps this is seen as an entry-level mind alteration that might lead to an acceptance of "globale erwärmung" (as the sinister EU might like to call global warming).But then again, this is nothing new. The intersection of politics and radon has some old landmarks. In fact, radon's link to lung cancer was noted more than a hundred years ago because of the very high death rate among miners in Central Europe. It took almost a century more (and many fatalities among U.S. uranium miners) for the cause and effect relationship to be fully accepted, more for political-economic than scientific reasons. Even to this day, the occupational exposure limit for radon in uranium mining in the U.S. is far higher than what is allowed for the general public.
Which brings this back around to current day politics, but shifts the venue from Iowa to the Commonwealth of Virginia. Legislators there soon will be deliberating whether or not to lift a moratorium on uranium mining in the state. As a part of that process, our NAS committee just submitted a 300+ page scientific report on the subject, including a number of issues related to radon and related exposures. A draft of the report can be accessed online at http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13266. I don't expect any candidates in Iowa will be logging on soon.
