NB Lung wants provincially-supported radon mitigation program for preventable cancer – New Brunswick [Video]

As the latest provincial budget was tabled and passed, NB Lung president and CEO Melanie Langille was disappointed not to see the province offer a radon mitigation program for homeowners.

“We are losing too many New Brunswickers to preventable lung cancer,” Langille said.

Radon is an odourless, colourless gas that can cause lung cancer after long-term exposure and is abundant in New Brunswick due to its geology. It’s estimated by a 2012 Health Canada study that one in five homes in the province have levels that would warrant repair.

Langille says the province is the only province without financial support in place to help people remediate their homes to bring the gas down to safe levels, the cost of which is often up to $3,000.

“Knowing that this is preventable just urges us to urge our government to support people in making these repairs to their home, because it’s nobody’s …