December 15, 2017
Dear Parents and Guardians,
The North Vancouver School District will be working in partnership with Vancouver Coastal Health to screen for radon in all of our schools this winter. Radon is a naturally occurring, colourless and odourless radioactive gas that is produced by the decay of uranium found in rock, soil or water. Although we have no evidence that radon is a problem in any of our schools, we want to be sure that levels are below recommended guidelines. This is part of our ongoing commitment to the health and safety of students and staff.
This testing will take approximately four months starting in January 2018 and will have no impact on school activities. We will inform you of the results once the screening program is completed, likely towards the end of the 2017‐18 school year. If radon levels are found to be elevated, affected buildings will be remediated.
Radon can be found in any building so Vancouver Coastal Health encourages you to also test your home this winter. As we are generally in our homes 60 ‐ 75% of the time, it is important to ensure that radon concentrations at home are below recommended guideline levels. The risk of health impacts is greatest following exposure over many years.
Please refer to the fact sheet attached for more information on this screening initiative and how you can test your home for radon. If you have questions or concerns please contact Charlene Wood, Senior Environmental Health Officer at Vancouver Coastal Health at 604.983.6797, Nevasha Naidoo, Communications Manager for the North Vancouver School District at 604.903.1254 or Hans Loeffelholz, Occupational Health and Safety Manager for the North Vancouver School District at 604.903.4616.
Sincerely,