Businesses in Chatham-Kent are being given the opportunity to help shape how radon is treated in the workplace.
Radon, a radioactive gas, occurs naturally in the ground but can become dangerous when it seeps in through cracks or a building's foundation. It is often worse in the wintertime when radon gets recirculated throughout a building through the heating system.
The Occupational Cancer Research Centre is now recruiting workplaces to be part of their Radon in the Workplace Study. The study will assess the levels of radon in Ontario workplaces, and what factors can influence those levels.
According to Paul Demers, director of the Occupational Cancer Research Centre and a professor at the University of Toronto, the effects of radon come from long-term exposure. He said about 13 per cent of lung cancer deaths in Ontario occur because of exposure to the gas.
"Like many different types of cancer, it takes a long time for lung cancer to develop after people are exposed to radon. The estimates are that radon is probably the second leading cause of lung cancer that we have in Canada," he said. "It's a colourless, odourless gas do you don't know when you're being exposed. It's not like you smell anything weird or you notice anything weird per se. That makes it very dangerous."
Demers said many campaigns and studies have been done on radon in homes but not as much as been done to look at the impacts radon can have where people work.
"We often think about radon being just a situation for the home. But most adults spend about a quarter of their life wherever they work so its a substantial amount of time. If they are being exposed at work and at home, that can be a particular problem for them. So we're really trying to figure out just how much of an issue this is in different communities across Ontario in order to make recommendations on what we should do about it."
Chatham-Kent is one of ten communities being invited to participate in the study. The Occupational Cancer Research Centre is conducting the study in collaboration with the Ontario Lung Association, Radiation Safety Institute of Canada, and Simon Fraser University. Ela Rydz, research associate with the Occupational Cancer Research Centre, said they are looking for about 50 businesses in each municipality. Rydz said eligible participants must be a small to medium-sized business with fewer than 500 employees, such as hospitals, municipal buildings or public libraries. Rydz said the building must also have a basement or underground space.
"Workers should be spending the majority of their time either underground or on the main floor of that building," she said.
If you're qualified to participate, the organization will visit your workplace and provide free radon gas monitors. The monitors will be collected after three months so the findings can be studied. The readings from the radar monitors will also be shared with each business.
"We ask that workplaces fill out two surveys just so we can collect a little more information about the buildings. We do encourage them to share results with employees. That's about the extent of their involvement," explained Rydz.
Anyone interested in joining the study can contact the Occupational Cancer Research Centre by calling 416-971-9800 ext. 2037 or emailing elizabeth.rydz@occupationalcancer.ca.