Radon in Quebec Schools and Daycares (CPE): But What About Your Child's Home?

Flat-vector school building with a radon detector — radon in Quebec schools and daycares

Quick answer: Yes. Starting in August 2011, Quebec's ministère de l'Éducation launched a large-scale radon screening effort; every school board was required to measure radon in all of its elementary and high schools by July 2014. Close to 4,000 school buildings were checked, and corrective work was carried out wherever concentrations exceeded Health Canada's guideline of 200 Bq/m³. The blind spot is the home: your child's school has very likely been tested — but the house where they sleep, play, and spend most of their time probably never has been.

This article explains, with official sources, what Quebec did in its schools and daycares, why it matters for children, and how you can test your own home.

Were Quebec's schools really tested for radon?

Yes, and systematically. In August 2011, Quebec's ministère de l'Éducation launched a radon screening operation covering all elementary and high schools in the province. Every school board was required to measure radon in all of its schools, and results had to be submitted to Quebec's intersectoral committee on radon (the comité intersectoriel québécois sur le radon, or CIQR) by July 2014 at the latest. In total, close to 4,000 school buildings were checked.

The stated goal: to improve knowledge about radon and ensure that students and staff would not be exposed to concentrations that threaten their health. It is one of the most complete school-radon screening campaigns in Canada — several other provinces (Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Yukon) tested all of their schools, while others tested only a limited number. Quebec, for its part, took an approach jointly led by its ministries of Education and Health, rooted in its intersectoral committee on radon.

This campaign did not come out of nowhere. As early as 2009–2010, a screening project had been carried out in 65 elementary schools located in "priority investigation zones," even before the larger province-wide operation. More than 500 dosimeters were installed there for about three months, then analyzed by Health Canada's Radiation Protection Bureau. The result: the mean came to 56 Bq/m³, well below the guideline, but 17% of the schools had at least one room above 200 Bq/m³ — proof that the problem, while not widespread, is real and localized.

Bottom line: Quebec's school network was screened in a structured way, under the authority of public agencies. The same is not true of homes: no program requires a private dwelling to be tested in Quebec.

What threshold did Quebec use for its schools — 200 Bq/m³?

Yes: the action level adopted for schools is Health Canada's federal guideline of 200 becquerels per cubic metre (Bq/m³), in force since 2007. Corrective work was carried out in every school where a concentration above that threshold was measured.

One point that is often confused needs to be clear: 200 Bq/m³ is not a risk-free level. According to Health Canada, there is no radon level that is free of risk; 200 Bq/m³ is the level at which action is recommended. The higher the concentration, the faster you should act. Quebec applied this same logic to its schools, with shorter correction timelines for the largest exceedances.

Worth noting: some people occasionally cite a "school" threshold of 112 Bq/m³. That figure does not apply to Quebec. The threshold used here — for schools as for homes — is 200 Bq/m³.

The results observed in Quebec schools spanned a wide range — roughly 15 to 663 Bq/m³ — with the vast majority remaining below 200 Bq/m³. That is exactly what you expect with radon: most buildings are fine, but a minority show elevated levels, and there is no way to know which ones without measuring.

How many Quebec schools exceeded the threshold?

According to a preliminary 2013 compilation, concentrations above the 200 Bq/m³ guideline had been detected in 19 school boards, and close to fifty elementary and high schools in Quebec recorded concentrations exceeding the threshold set by Health Canada. Screening and analysis were still under way at that time in 22 other school boards.

The Commission scolaire de la Beauce-Etchemin was the board with the largest number of affected schools recorded — 14 schools — two of which showed concentrations above 600 Bq/m³, requiring corrective work within one year.

What to take from this: roughly fifty schools out of nearly 4,000 buildings is a small proportion — but these are precisely the buildings that would never have been identified without measuring. The screening worked because they tested, not because they guessed.

And what about CPEs and daycares — are they tested too?

This is where the picture changes. The child-care network is far less uniform than the school network: it brings together centres de la petite enfance (CPEs), subsidized and non-subsidized garderies, and home-based daycare. There is no equivalent to the large province-wide operation carried out in schools.

What has been done are pilot projects. The best-documented is an exploratory study conducted in the Laurentides and Outaouais regions, published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health (Gagnon et al., 2016). Here's how it unfolded:

  • 36 CPEs located in two priority investigation zones took part.
  • A kit containing dosimeters (alpha-track detectors) was mailed out, along with installation instructions and information sheets for parents and educators. The kits were mailed on February 16, 2012, and 368 dosimeters were deployed.
  • Two CPEs (5.5%) had at least one measurement above the Canadian guideline of 200 Bq/m³.

The study also set out to verify whether CPE managers could apply a measurement protocol themselves — which they did successfully, with the installation instructions generally well respected. The Ministère de la Famille facilitated the contacts; the work was funded by the ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) and the Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ).

A revealing detail for parents: 91% of participants judged this screening initiative "very relevant," 26% said they intended to test for radon at home, and 6% had already done so. In other words, as soon as radon is discussed at school or daycare, families naturally make the connection to their own home — and that is exactly the right instinct.

Why is radon a particular concern for children?

Three reasons, all supported by the sources, without exaggeration:

  1. The time spent in these buildings. Young children spend a significant part of their days at school or daycare — which is precisely what justifies measuring radon there. But they spend even more time at home: they sleep there, play there, and live there. If we are concerned about their exposure at school, logic says we should be concerned about the home too.

  2. The nature of the risk. Radon is an odourless, invisible radioactive gas. According to Health Canada, radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer among people who have never smoked, and the second leading cause of lung cancer after tobacco in the general population. An estimated 16% of lung cancers are linked to it, representing more than 3,000 deaths per year in Canada. The risk is tied to cumulative exposure over many years — which is why it matters to reduce a high concentration early, especially in a home where children are growing up.

  3. The "tight house" effect. Modern, well-insulated and airtight homes can trap more radon. A comfortable, energy-efficient house is therefore not automatically a low-radon house — once again, only measuring will tell you.

A word of balance: this is not about alarming anyone. The sources do not support the idea of an outsized risk unique to children, distinct from that of adults. The message is simple and reasonable: radon is a preventable risk, and it is easy to measure.

The key point for parents: the school is tested — what about home?

Here is the finding that sums it all up:

Place Who tests / Status Action level Reality
Elementary and high schools Ministère de l'Éducation + school boards (mandatory screening completed by July 2014) 200 Bq/m³ Close to 4,000 buildings checked; corrective work where needed
CPEs / daycares Pilot projects (e.g., Laurentides, Outaouais); less uniform network, no systematic province-wide program 200 Bq/m³ Partial screening; largely depends on the manager's initiative
Your home No one. No program, no requirement for private dwellings 200 Bq/m³ (Health Canada guideline) Probably never tested — it's up to you to do it

The province did its part for the hours your child spends in class. But the place where they spend the most time — the home — is up to you, and no one else. That is the logical blind spot in the system: the school was tested, but not the bedroom.

The good news is that testing your home is simple, affordable, and uses the same method used in schools and CPEs: a long-term alpha-track detector. (For the Canada-wide picture of screening in workplaces, schools, and daycares, see our article Radon in Workplaces, Schools and Daycares in Canada. For the province-specific context, see our feature on Radon in Quebec.)

How do you test for radon in your home in Quebec?

The only reliable way to know a building's radon level — school, daycare, or home — is a long-term alpha-track test of at least 91 days, ideally during the heating season (fall and winter), when windows stay closed and concentrations are most representative. Health Canada advises against relying on a short-term test to decide whether to act.

Here is how to go about it:

  1. Get a long-term alpha-track kit, analyzed by a lab certified under the C-NRPP (the Canadian National Radon Proficiency Program).
  2. Place the detector in the lowest lived-in level of the home (a finished basement, or the ground floor if the basement is not occupied), away from drafts, windows, and humidity. Our guide Where to Place a Radon Test Kit lays out the best practices.
  3. Leave the detector in place for 91 days to a year. The longer the duration, the more representative the result is of your actual exposure.
  4. Return the kit to the lab for analysis and receive your result in Bq/m³.

That is exactly the logic behind the RadonTest.ca radon test kit: a 91-day-and-longer alpha-track test, analyzed by a C-NRPP-certified lab in Canada (Lex Scientific, in Guelph, Ontario), with prepaid return shipping included. The same method used in Quebec's schools and CPEs — applied this time to the place where your family spends the most time.

If you live in a newly built home, note that the Quebec Construction Code now governs certain radon-related measures. Our articles The GCR Warranty and Radon in a New Home in Quebec and The Quebec Construction Code and Radon explain what that means for you.

What if the result is above 200 Bq/m³?

Don't panic: an exceedance is neither an immediate emergency nor a hopeless situation. Radon acts over the long term, and reduction techniques are effective and proven. Here are the steps:

  • If the result is at or above 200 Bq/m³: Health Canada recommends taking corrective action to lower the level within one year — and the higher the level, the sooner you should act. Aim for the lowest level reasonably achievable.
  • The most common solution is active soil depressurization (a system that captures radon beneath the slab and vents it outside), installed by a certified professional. Our article How Radon Mitigation Works in Canada describes the process in detail.

For a complete guide to the next steps after a high result, see What to Do If Your Radon Level Is Above 200 Bq/m³.

Frequently Asked Questions

Were Quebec's schools tested for radon? Yes. Starting in August 2011, the ministère de l'Éducation required all school boards to measure radon in all of their elementary and high schools, with screening to be completed by July 2014. Close to 4,000 school buildings were checked, and corrective work was carried out wherever the 200 Bq/m³ threshold was exceeded.

How many Quebec schools exceeded the radon threshold? According to a preliminary 2013 compilation, close to fifty schools, spread across 19 school boards, exceeded the 200 Bq/m³ guideline. The Commission scolaire de la Beauce-Etchemin was the most affected, with 14 schools.

Are daycares and CPEs tested for radon in Quebec? Not systematically. The child-care network (CPEs, subsidized and non-subsidized garderies, home-based care) is less uniform than the school network. Pilot projects have taken place, notably in the Laurentides and Outaouais, where a study deployed 368 dosimeters across 36 CPEs; 2 of them (5.5%) exceeded the 200 Bq/m³ threshold.

What is the radon level you shouldn't exceed in Quebec? Health Canada's guideline is 200 Bq/m³. Be careful: this is not a risk-free threshold. There is no radon level that is free of risk; 200 Bq/m³ is simply the level at which action is recommended — as soon as possible when the concentration is high.

Is radon more dangerous for children? The sources do not demonstrate an outsized risk unique to children compared with adults. That said, children spend a great deal of time at home, and radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers according to Health Canada. Reducing a high exposure early in a home where children are growing up is a sensible preventive measure.

If my child's school was tested, do I still need to test my home? Yes. School screening tells you nothing about your home's radon level. Radon depends on the soil, construction, and air-tightness specific to each building; two neighbouring houses can show very different results. Only a test of your own home will tell you.

How do you test for radon at home? With a long-term alpha-track kit (91 days and longer), analyzed by a C-NRPP-certified lab. You place the detector in the lowest lived-in level, ideally during the heating season, then return it to the lab for analysis.

Order your radon test kit → — all-in, analyzed in Canada, prepaid return shipping.

Sources