A new article was published by colleagues in WP2 (Exposure) of RadoNorm in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Science. Generally, only indoor exposure is considered since outdoor levels are low. However, in some areas near caves, mines and other underground cavities, their ventilation can have a large impact on outdoors levels, which in some places should be assessed. In their paper titled “Outdoor radon and thoron in an area with naturally ventilating bedrock fractures”, researchers at DSA, Norway, and the Western University of Applied Sciences, Norway, assess such an area, Stampa, where outdoor levels are many times higher than global outdoor averages and above indoor recommendation levels. They also assess the sources of the outdoor radon levels. The study is important as it shows that geology may be important and involve outdoor radon levels that should not be neglected. They thus include radon source characterisation, exposure characterisation, as well as spatial and temporal variation.

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