NAS Report on Radon in Drinking Water

• Radon Home
 
• Basic Information about Radon in Drinking Water
  
 
• Proposed Radon in Drinking Water Regulation
   

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EPA is developing a regulation to protect public health by limiting  radon in drinking water, as required by the 1996 Safe Drinking Water  Act (SDWA).

A report released September 15, 1998, by the  National Academy of Sciences is the most comprehensive accumulation of  scientific data on the public health risks of radon in drinking water.  The report, released September 15, 1998, was required by the Safe  Drinking Water Act.  The report  confirms  that there are drinking water related cancer deaths, primarily due to  lung cancer. The report in general confirms earlier EPA scientific  conclusions and analyses for drinking water, and presents no major  changes to EPA's 1994 risk assessment. The Academy  recommends a small reduction of the overall risk associated with radon  in drinking water compared with previous EPA analyses.

The Executive Summary of the NAS Report and initial EPA perspectives are available online:

     
• NAS Report Executive Summary: "Risk Assessment of Radon in Drinking Water"
     
• Initial Perspectives  on NAS Report: "Risk Assessment of Radon in Drinking Water" PDF  (3 pp, 26K)
     
• NAS Report and EPA's Approach to Setting Limits for Radon in Drinking Water PDF (2 pp, 17K)