INITIAL RESULTS OF INDOOR RADON MEASUREMENTS WITHIN THE GERMAN RADON STUDIES

This paper describes radon distributions in dwellings for selected reg ions in Germany which were measured in epidemiologic studies on the ri sk of lung cancer due to radon. The indoor radon concentrations were m easured in living rooms and in bedrooms with three types of passive in tegrating devices, using activated charcoal for short-term measurement s up to 3 d and nuclear track etching for long-term measurements up to 1 y. The latter determined an overall median radon concentration of 4 7 Bq/m(3) in the living room and of 42 Bq/m(3) in the bedroom. General ly, charcoal detectors for short periods measure higher concentrations than alpha-track detectors for long periods. The inhabitants of the h ouses were asked about living conditions and house characteristics. An analysis of variance was conducted to find out which of these paramet ers have a strong influence on the radon concentration. It was found t hat type of house, year of construction, and existence of a basement a re most important, Ventilation habits play a major role in the bedroom , as does the type of heating in the livng room. Copyright (C) 1996 El sevier Science Ltd.