Wisconsin “Sconnie” Radon Program Jessica Maloney – WI Radon Program Manager

I never lose. I either win or learn. Nelson Mandela We have this quote hanging on our refrigerator at home. I was trying to think of some words for this group that were inspiring and yet captured where I was at with managing the radon program in Wisconsin. I’ve been working on radon in WI for about 5 years now. I have come against quite a few roadblocks, but have learned from all of them. I think we should try to keep that attitude moving forward today and as we listen to speakers at the conference this week. What are we learning from our setbacks? On to the WI program format and updates.

Radon Information Centers Waukesha Waushara Dane Grant Fond du Lac Sauk Marathon Eau Claire Dunn Taylor La Crosse Watertown Washington Kenosha Manitowoc Polk Wisconsin hosts 16 Radon Information Centers (RICs) statewide. They are health department staff trained in radon measurement and mitigation. All have been or are currently certified. They distribute test kits to the public at low cost and give technical advice to the public. They also do various outreach activities throughout the year; reaching smaller communities throughout the state.

Non-regulated Program 89 Certified Mitigators 81 Certified Measurement Providers

A few RICs formatted some billboards that were posted along major interstates.

Television interviews – Eau Claire (Northern WI), Waukesha (SE WI)

Publications for home buyers that realtors can hand out Publications for home buyers that realtors can hand out. Very well received by home inspectors.

Radon 101 Video Radon 101 video for homeowners in creation; whiteboard style. Will primarily be a 2 minute web based video. It will be hosted on our website and youtube channel. We’ll maybe shorten it to a 30 second tv spot for NRAM…depending on how well it turns out.

Priority 6: Decrease Exposure to Radon A Priority 6: Decrease Exposure to Radon A. Increase Awareness of the connection between radon and cancer risk B. Increase the testing and mitigation of homes and other buildings for radon C. Increase the number of residential buidings built or remodeled using radon reducing methods.

Indoor Radon Level Test Results – 1995 to 2016 A major data collection effort was conducted throughout the spring of this year that resulted in 124,817 indoor radon test results from 1995 to 2016 (throughout the state of Wisconsin). The test results were geocoded by their physical address and aggregated to multiple geographic boundaries (see slide) for further exploration of the trends in indoor radon emissions throughout the state. The value in mapping the results to their physical address allows us to accomplish two very important things:   Identify areas of concern (aka greatest exposure risk) by political boundaries for more effective allocation of funds. In other words, allocate funds to LHDs or municipalities that need it the most. Or, create messaging to local politicians that represent districts where the exposure risk is the greatest, (based on the geocoded test results). Identify areas of concern with much greater granularity for even more detailed assessment of where exposure risk might be highest within a community. The example of the Milwaukee block group (in the slide) with high-ish test results says a great deal, because it indicates that there may be high radon potential in that area and a very serious lack of awareness due to all the ‘Insufficient data’ areas where no testing has been done. In summary, because we have all this great data, we have a ton of flexibility and opportunity for analysis, messaging, etc. We’re also still in the infant stages of processing all of this information. And determining how we can most effectively utilize the data… open to suggestions…. lots of data, lots of ideas, limited resources…

WI Radon Webmap Usage Past 12 months = 32,668 views 90 views per day on average

Website Usage Website traffic has increased in the last three years. So far in 2016 we have had over 41,000 visits, whereas in 2015 alone we had over 50,000. We still have 4 more months to go! Website has improved; lowradon.org is used more widely in ads and promotional items; increase in number of certified mitigators/listings are a large part of web hits.

@DHSWI Can you name the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers? #lungcancerawarenessmonth Answer post: Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers. Test your home! Go to lowradon.org for info. Getting some interaction from tweet followers with a Q&A post. More people die of lung cancer than from breast, prostate, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers combined. #nationalradonactionmonth

Community Education and Awareness Resources Free to Breathe www.freetobreathe.org Community Education and Awareness Resources Lung cancer basics Symptoms bookmarks Window clings Support line for patients and caregivers Focus is on lung cancer survivorship. Funding research; Increasing patient participation in clinical trials; empowering the lung cancer community/reducing the stigma of lung cancer. -support line for education to patients and caregivers

WI Radon Conference held every other year in the Fall at the Heidel House resort. Excellent conference where beautiful women greet you at the door. Well attended every year. VIP speakers. Most importantly you are very well fed; and we always have excellent dialog and full agenda.

National Radon Action Month

National Radon Action Month

Thank You Jessica.maloney@wi.gov