radon gasconsidered highly carcinogenic, is present in 70% of the Galician territory. Concentrations were also noted in the regions of Castile and León, Castile-La Mancha, Sierra de Madrid and the Pyrenees in Catalonia. A gas which is the second cause of lung cancer and it can appear even in homes.
Radon is a radioactive gas produced by the decay of uranium in soil, rocks and water. “It’s concentrated on the ground floor of the houses,” explains Héctor Giménez, a person concerned.
The only way to detect it is to measure it with a specific detector. “A detector must be placed to quantify the existing radiation.” warns Alberto Ruano, director of the Radón laboratory.
At Héctor, peaks of 1,800 appeared during the measurement. “It’s the same exposure that a radiologist who works without protection can suffer,” he compares. Indeed, his parents, non-smokers, died of lung cancer. “My parents, when they slept, received radiation as if they were smoking while sleeping,” he says.
And radon, as it accumulates, becomes more and more harmful. The solution is to carry out forced ventilation. “This can be done through anti-radon plates or soil depressurization, which eliminates radon from the soil,” explains Alberto Ruano.
All to eliminate a carcinogenic gas that is more present than we think.
