Radon in Public Institutions: Remediation in 13 Schools, Kindergartens, and Health Centers Across Slovenia
The Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Radiation Protection (URSVS) issued remediation orders in 2024 for 13 public institutions—schools, kindergartens, and health centers. The reason for the orders is that the annual effective dose of radon for children and employees in these buildings has been exceeded. Until the remediation is completed, these institutions must reduce the amount of time people spend in the affected areas.
An interesting case is a kindergarten in Senožeče, where measurements have been carried out for 14 years and the recommendation was previously only for ventilation. They received a remediation order this year, even though the gas concentrations are not significantly higher than before. As URSVS explains, the reason is a change in the international methodology for calculating exposure, which results in a higher effective dose for the same radon concentration. Until the remediation is performed (expected in August), the kindergarten is reducing the presence of children in the three most affected rooms and using adjacent school rooms instead.
Similarly, at the Sežana School Center, only one classroom needs to be remediated. They are temporarily solving the problem with intensive ventilation. Both the kindergarten and the school center are facing challenges in finding contractors and waiting for plans (the Sežana School Center, for example, has been waiting for plans for two months), with part of the reason being stricter requirements.
It is also important to note that the assessment of an exceeded dose is often based on winter measurements (when concentrations are highest) and is not necessarily a reflection of the year-round situation. The final exposure is strongly influenced by the actual time spent in a room, which URSVS verifies with additional inspections.
The full list of the 13 institutions that received the order is provided in the article. You can read more about this topic on the RTV SLO portal.