A recent study published with open access article in the Journal of the European Radon Association highlights the efficacy of the 2010 revision of building regulations in Norwegian housing to mitigate radon exposure, particularly in radon-prone areas of the country. This study was undertaken by the Norwegian Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (DSA), answering a WP5 aim. Previous studies in areas with normal levels of radon has found that introduced building regulations are proving to be effective in reducing radon exposure in new households and the group at DSA sought to verify these findings in homes from seven radon‑prone municipalities.

Key findings of the paper reveal that the revised Norwegian building regulations are indeed reducing radon exposure in the surveyed municipalities. The results also show that even though crawl spaces reduce radon accumulation in these homes the indoor levels are still too high in some of the homes in areas with enhanced levels of radon, indicating a need for more mitigation. The article clearly demonstrates that even in radon-prone regions of Norway, some households surprisingly still lack awareness of the threat and mitigation strategies. The paper therefore calls for more urgent and proactive efforts by authorities to raise awareness.