Radon Leaders Saving Lives
Strategies in Action at a Glance
| States Profiled in Strategies in Action | Program Office | Population (% High Risk) | Certification | Real Estate Disclosure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL - Alabama Department of Public Health and Cooperative Extension System's Radon Program | Health/Cooperative Extension | 4.5 million (21%) | ||
| NJ - New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's Radon Program | Environment | 8.7 million (25%) | X | X |
| PA - Pennsylvania Bureau of Radiation Protection's Radon Program | Environment | 12.4 million (76%) | X | X |
| WI - Wisconsin Division of Public Health's Radon Program | Health | 5.5 million (41%) | X | |
| ALL STATES | 300 million (27%) | 17 | 32 |
Cultivate High Performing Collaborations & Partnerships
- AL recruited radon testing labs as partners in data collection by "looking for something that's in it for them. We now have data on over 37,000 short-term test results from labs."
Build Local Infrastructure for Effective Program Delivery
- AL regularly convenes extension agents to discuss the best ways to implement the program statewide. "We give 90% of our SIRG dollars to extension so their input and ownership is essential. The result [of the regular meetings] is more effective education and greater job satisfaction."
- AL's state coordinator captures activity information from extension agents in a quarterly newsletter for all offices; and convenes a Radon Advisory Committee (RAC) of state staff and staff from a rotating group of extension offices each quarter to discuss how to run the program, organize NRAM events, develop educational materials, and more. "Our best ideas come from brainstorming with them. The RAC gives local agents a window into state-level program deliberations and improves two-way communications."
Design a Results-Driven Program
- AL recruited labs willing to include a specialized datasheet in radon test kits. AL designed a datasheet to gather information on who performs test, the type of tests, type of foundation, whether homes have active or passive systems, and what led people to test for radon The labs willing to partner with AL to provide the data got good publicity on AL's web site.
- AL fine tunes program strategy based on impact results data that compares test kit sales to actual usage. Results helped AL discover that displaying zip code maps at local home shows, offering radon test kits via their web site, and providing community group presentations were all more effective tactics than sending radon information home on the first day of school, so AL shifted their resources and focus.
For more on the AL questionnaires, click here…
“We convinced several labs to include a card with the radon testing equipment that asked users to report what caused them to test. There was a code for each type of outreach we conducted. Because we know how many pieces of information we started with at each event, how many test kit certificates were distributed and how many were redeemed, and how many test kits were used, that gives us several useful data points. We now know that anything over 30% is a good usage number for an activity. For example, 39% of the test kits we promoted through our oncology outreach program were deployed, but a relatively low number of them discovered high radon levels; 20% of the tests resulting from our newborn program (modeled on PA’s maternity ward outreach program) show high radon levels; and about 50% of the tests distributed through home shows are deployed and 26% of those lead to the detection of high radon levels.”
Cultivate Effective Relationships with Industry
- AL motivated builders "by using test results to identify zip codes with high radon risk and sharing information with builders in those areas. A builder incorporated RRNC so we made promotional signs for his houses that said 'this home is radon safe'. The builder did the right thing; we wanted to draw attention to that."
Maximize the Impact of Your Outreach
- AL partnered with oncologists to distribute information about radon risks and provide coupons for test kits for patients: 38% of kits distributed through oncologists’ offices were deployed.
- At home shows, AL uses a huge color-coded zip code map. “The map draws people like flies because it brings radon close to them…to their neighborhood. We use it as an outreach tool. People stop to look at their zip code and when they’re looking we start talking. They almost always purchase a test kit if their home is in 25% or greater probability zip code area…We also provide zip code maps to city councils in high radon counties and use the map in our fact sheets.”
- AL encourages its certified mitigators and testers to help promote radon education at home shows, public meetings and civic group presentations. "The certified professionals gain exposure while providing expert and technical support to our program."
Cultivate Effective Relationships with Industry
- IL needs data but licensees say reporting can be difficult. IL shows licensees why data reporting benefits them and makes it as easy as possible to report data. “We only ask for data that we need; demonstrate the benefit of providing data by showing how we use it for public outreach which helps them grow their business; let licensees report when it works for them; and offer a CEU course on how to use Excel to track and report data.”
- IL and industry partners educate the public by presenting a unified message. “We don’t criticize each other publicly. Public debate just leaves people confused. We have conference calls and meetings before public statements and appearances to make sure we’re all pulling in the same direction.”
Cultivate High Performing Collaborations & Partnerships
- NJ needed DCA to get an RRNC requirement on the books so pursued a partnership with DCA for years, took small steps to build the partnership over time, and compromised with DCA to find a goal both organizations could agree on. NJ made it easy for DCA to say yes by providing an RRNC presentation for builders, showing that it wasn’t a big added cost, regularly sharing data, and training code officials to do inspections so DCA didn’t face a new burden. “Now, we send DCA an updated Tier 1 map and within a month, it’s in the code.”
To read more about how NJ recruited DCA as a partner, click here…
“Getting DCA to work with us on the RRNC requirement wasn’t easy. Radon programs just can’t take no for an answer; you have to keep pushing. It’s all about tenacity. Because it is a voluntary program, if people didn’t keep fighting the fight, we wouldn’t have what we have today. DCA handles all of the building codes in NJ so we have worked to educate and partner with them for years. We wanted them to adopt RRNC in all tiers but could see that wasn’t going to happen so we tried to make it easy for them to adopt the elements they could live with…We had to compromise to get where we are but over time, we demonstrated that we respect the DCA’s expertise by inviting them to the table to see how the scientific analysis that results in the updated tier map is conducted and by listening to DCA’s recommendations about how to work with the building community. We defer to them and recognize that they are the technical experts. We don’t try to compromise their position with the builders. We built a mutually respectful relationship… Because they can update their codes every month, unlike other parts of government that take years to make any regulatory changes, they can add communities to the list of Tier 1 RRNC-required building areas easily. And now we are working to expand the requirements to Tiers 2 and 3 because we see an opportunity.”
- NJ and the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), which oversees the state's building codes, partner on Tier 1 radon resistant new construction (RRNC) requirements. "We develop the science on Tier 1 zones, DCA distributes information and builders pay attention because DCA is their regulator."
Design a Results-Driven Program
- NJ teams with Rutgers University to analyze new home construction and radon testing data to assess how many RRNC homeowners activate their mitigation systems and conduct post-tests of their radon levels.
- NJ uses data provided by testers and mitigators to target outreach to homes with high radon levels that haven't been mitigated and uses DCA data to promote risk reduction. "The data from DCA is great because it lets us target our outreach specifically to people who live in new homes that we know were built with RRNC."
Maximize the Impact of Your Outreach
- NJ always thinks of new ways to make radon messages vibrant. Recently, NJ began emphasizing that radon is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. "Some people don't like it, but we have seen that it's a powerful message that gets attention, so we're going for it."
- NJ counsels schools to use RRNC in new buildings or additions to reduce potential costs of mitigation if elevated radon levels are later discovered.
- During NRAM, NJ works with county cancer coalitions, the Lung Cancer Circle of Hope, and county smoking cessation programs to deliver radon informational lectures at local venues.
Cultivate High Performing Collaborations & Partnerships
- PA secured partners inside the Bureau's IT department and (at no cost) got an Oracle database with more than 900,000 geo-coded radon test results.
For more information about PA’s powerful Oracle Analyzer tool, click here…
The Bureau’s IT Department was assessing databases and they approached the Radon Program and said, "You have a lot of data here. We have this tool we’re testing out, and we’d like to test how it works by geo-coding your data." PA jumped at the chance to get their data geo-coded. A PA staff person who likes working with data was assigned to the project and when the IT Department chose to purchase the Oracle system, the PA program was ready to use it immediately. “Now, we can use the system to plot trends. For example, we can see tests and mitigations by zip code and tests by region over time. When we see spikes at different points in the year, we can measure the impact of our outreach efforts, like our PSAs. We have well more than 900,000 records now in the Analyzer and we’re still just learning all of the things it can do.”
- PA got a graphic designer to develop a 3-D diorama of an installed mitigation system for free by visiting him in-person and emphasizing the impact his work could have on people's decisions to reduce their risk.
- Over 10 years, PA and the regional ALA have refined a strategy to reduce lung cancer from radon that builds on each one's strengths. "We'll discuss things at the early stages of planning and see who has which strengths and how we can best leverage them. It's never a one way street with our partnership." Their agreement stipulates that PA will provide resources, expertise, and materials and ALA will deliver school, web and field-based outreach. The results: ALA has distributed over 86,000 test kits leading to an estimated 4,800 mitigations, tracked test results by county and collected data on the likelihood of action in response to high levels. In 2008, PA nominated ALA for the CRCPD Radon Hero Award to recognize ALA's outstanding leadership on radon risk reduction.
- PA partnered with the American Lung Association (ALA) to gain access to schools. The partnership has delivered access to schools statewide, in-school education and test kit distribution, science lessons on radon testing and results tracking, and a wealth of data on school-based outreach, including the number of test kits deployed and the percentage of those that led to radon mitigations.
For more information on the PA-ALA schools partnership, click here…
ALA’s program in schools involves presentations to school audiences, working with science teachers to incorporate radon into science lessons, and testing local communities, class rooms and even school buildings. ALA also tracks conversions from their school-based outreach so can report back to PA on the percentages of test kits distributed that were deployed, analyzed, and even the percent that ultimately led to mitigations.
Build Local Infrastructure for Effective Program Delivery
- PA learned that good ideas often come from the grassroots. "One of our most successful programs came out of a mini-grant: the newborn program to get maternity wards to provide new moms with information about testing homes for radon. We now have more than 70 hospitals participating and see a good return with many new parents testing and mitigating high radon levels."
Design a Results-Driven Program
- PA is developing a web interface to streamline results reporting: testers and mitigators will access the database online, including through their PDAs.
Cultivate Effective Relationships with Industry
- PA keeps radon on industry's radar by, for example, writing articles for the builder's association magazine. "They featured our story in an article that describes RRNC and says that the Builders Association sees the value in it and will not oppose it. That's a really big win for us."
- "Industry folks are in the field every day. [PA] works with them as much as we can. Our approach shows that we want them to succeed and the more they work with us the less likely they are to face mandatory action. We build relationships by admitting that industry partners have something to teach us and asking for their advice."
- "We can go to township trainings for builders and share data from the Analyzer [PA's database] that breaks the radon risk down by zip code and shows the probabilities and statistics of radon in each area. We make it personal during those trainings and give builders local numbers and messages to help them market RRNC."
Maximize the Impact of Your Outreach
- PA partners with local real estate associations and builder associations to provide radon testing, mitigation, and RRNC trainings for their members.
Cultivate High Performing Collaborations & Partnerships
- WI partners with 16 public health environmental sanitarians to deliver its program. “They are certified professionals with local experience. They know how to reach people, have strong connections to local leaders and media, and because they bundle their messages and target them to local concerns, they have a great impact.”
Build Local Infrastructure for Effective Program Delivery
- 90% of WI's SIRG dollars go to 16 local Radon Information Centers (RICs) and to mini-grants. RICs, which are run by certified testing and mitigation experts, field geographically-routed calls from a 1-800 number; provide low-cost test kits; follow-up on high test results; recruit local mitigators; and track results. "Local public health has unique expertise about how to reach people, what messages matter and to whom. They have better outreach skills than state people or consulting firms because it's based on local experience."
- WI empowers RICs to lead. One result: the RICs produced a map of certified mitigators and recruited new mitigators to meet public needs. "When they first made the maps, mitigators were only in the highly populated areas, but now they're all over the state because of the RIC's efforts. They do what it takes to promote public health and when they saw that required more certified mitigators, they created an industry."
- At a biennial radon meeting for industry and public health, WI recognizes particularly successful local programs to share their lessons for success and goals for the future.
- WI convenes state, RIC and other local health staff twice per year, including one meeting every December to plan for NRAM.
Design a Results-Driven Program
- In the RFPs for radon grant dollars, WI sets out its long-term program goal—the reduction in lung cancer incidence due to radon—and output measures for tracking progress—the number of homes tested and those with levels over 4 pCi/L that are mitigated.
- WI requires grantees to examine surveillance data for homes with elevated radon, keep records of tests conducted with agency assistance, and follow cases of elevated exposure to promote mitigation by working with labs that will report results to the tester and the agency
Cultivate Effective Relationships with Industry
- WI lists certified industry members on its web site and promotes certified vendors through RIC and local health agencies. WI also supports 'the good guys' by giving them data that demonstrates the radon risks to customers. "Though there is no regulation that says you must be certified, between the close relationships with the state and industry and the activities of the RICs, we have created a lot of competition for people who aren't certified."
- WI hosts a radon conference every other year that attracts a large industry audience. "Though we may not always agree, by convening this event we keep in touch and make sure everyone has a chance to be heard." WI's leaders also participate in online trade group discussions, such as the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI) message boards.
Maximize the Impact of Your Outreach
- WI advises RICs to give the media stories with local flavor. "A press release from local experts that speaks to local concerns will get published. Locally sourced and cited information reaches more people than state outreach."
- The 16 RICs that support WI offer local access to technical expertise on radon testing and mitigation: at least one staff person at every RIC is certified for measurement, mitigation and contracting. When the public calls 888-LOW-RADON, they are geographically routed to their closest RIC where they can find technical experts, access lists of local testers and mitigators, and hear examples of how their neighbors have managed high radon levels.
