RadoNorm Citizen science projects
In the framework of the RadoNorm European project, 4 pilot citizen science projects in France, Hungary, Ireland and Norway were launched and tested and helped to support the creation of a network of citizen science projects in radon in Europe. The pilot project RadoNorm Aerosol in Hungary is still ongoing. RadoNorm opened a call to select citizen science initiatives on radon and 6 projects were selected for funding from September 2023:
Italy, OCRA aims to reduce radon levels through measurement of exposure and increased awareness of radon risks and mitigation measures in houses and workplaces in one of the most radon-affected municipalities in Italy.
Poland, AHSRadon Hunt aims to assess the need to reduce radon concentration levels in Warsaw and the Silesia region by conducting indoor radon concentration in school buildings, houses, underground mines and tourist routes as well as comparing radon in tap water in different regions with radon in radon water sold for drinking in spa resorts.
Portugal, RadAR aims to engage 60 high school students from 3 schools in Portugal, to empower them to create and implement a local communication strategy that encourages the local community to measure their dwellings and to take action to reduce indoor radon exposure in case of high concentration levels.
Slovakia, RadonGPS aims to compare short-term (2-weeks) and long-term (3-month) indoor radon measurements in dwellings in the town of Banská Bystrica and to engage students of secondary construction schools (future building professionals) to design tailor-made mitigation measures for owners of dwellings with high radon concentration.
Slovenia, RadoNorm-SLO assesses how active participation in a radon monitoring campaign could change participants’ behavior and increase mitigation rates. It examines the relationship between radon awareness, outcomes of measurements and mitigation of homes.
Spain, RADOHOW seeks to engage 50 families to measure and compare the levels of radon exposure at work vs home in 5 areas.
Aim
The European project RadoNorm aims to support local communities and citizens to launch citizen science projects in the field of radon. Each project has its own objectives.
RadoNorm pilot projects were tested in 2022 in France (to improve an on-line self-diagnostic tool); Hungary (high school students developed a toolkit consisting of various low-cost measurement sensors to measure air quality, including radon); Ireland, (co-creation of a DIY toolkit for remediation) and Norway (citizens defined themselves the aim of the project, the research question and their level of involvement).
Citizen science initiatives in the field of radon were analysed in Martell, M. et al. (2021) Evaluation of citizen science contributions to radon research. Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, 237. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvrad.2021.106685
How to participate
From September 2023, the European project RadoNorm funds and supports citizen science initiatives related to radon testing or /and radon mitigation in radon prone areas in 6 countries: Italy, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain for a period of six months. You can get in touch with the RadoNorm team who will put you in contact with the citizen science project in your country. More information in the webpage: https://www.radonorm.eu/activities/radonorm-citizen-science/
Needed equipment
In some RadoNorm citizen science pilot initiatives there are radon detectors or air pollutant sensors which serve to measure the level of radon in dwellings, schools or workplaces.