The most recent studies place radon as the second cause of lung cancer after tobacco

The Radioactivity Laboratory of the University of Cantabria (LARUC) has become the first accredited for measuring radon in the air and the exhalation of radon in soils in accordance with the UNE-EN ISO/IEC 17025:2005 standard.

Radon is a radioactive gas that is naturally present, but whose continued inhalation can cause serious damage to the respiratory system. The most recent studies have certified that it is the second cause of lung cancer after tobacco.

So far in Spain, the legislation has been the Royal Decree 783/2001 Regulation on health protection against Ionizing Radiation, and the Nuclear Security Council's IS - 33 Instruction that established which working activities should be subject to control (caves, galleries, spas and areas identified by their high levels of radon).

In the last two years, the (2013/59/EURATOM) Directive has taken one more step in controlling radon by establishing permissible radon levels not only for work places, but also for homes. This Regulation shall come into force in Spanish regulations before 18 February, 2018.

"We decided on accreditation due to the need to be part of the growing market that lies ahead with the (2013/59/EURATOM) Directive being enforced in 2018 that defines the Basic Safety Standards (BSS) and so, will complete the work developed over the last forty years" explained Luis Santiago Quindós Poncela researcher at the Radon Group of the LARUC laboratory at the University of Cantabria.

The tests by those who have accredited the University of Cantabria's laboratory include, among others, the analysis of the measurement of radon activity in water, radon concentration and exposure in air and soil radon exhalation measurements.

The researchers attached to the University of Cantabria's Radon group of the LARUC laboratory are a nationally and internationally recognised group in gas radon research (analytical methods, dosimetry in closed environments, influence on health, etc.). Since 1988, they have been actively involved, both nationally and internationally, in natural radiation projects.

It becomes the first laboratory to be accredited and adapted to the requirements of the European Directive 2013/51/EURATOM for protection against radon concentration and exposure in air and soil radon exhalation measurements.