The basement of residential buildings as part of radon preventive measures

Faculty of Architecture, Cracow University of Technology, 31-155 Kraków, 24 Warszawska St., Poland

^* Corresponding author: tkusionowicz@pk.edu.pl

Abstract

The Directive 2013/59/Euratom was adopted by the Council of the European Union in 2013. It lays down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers from exposure to ionising radiation. The directive obliges our country to adopt the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary for its implementation. According to research conducted by the Institute of Nuclear Physics in Kraków, radon constitutes the largest source of ionising radiation a resident of our country is exposed to. Its share reaches almost 40% of the annual dose. Inhalation of radon and products of its decay in rooms constitutes a significant part of the dose of ionising radiation whose source is radon. Residential premises are the rooms in which we spend nearly 60% of our life in our climate zone. Environmental studies conducted in these rooms demonstrate that the concentration of radon in their interior is in many cases greater than its concentration outside the building. This issue is dealt with in Article 74 of the Directive 2013/59/Euratom. It recommends taking action to prevent long-term health risks resulting from exposure to radon in residential and public premises. Architectural and construction solutions applied in buildings play a significant role in the prevention of such dangers. One of the radon preventive measures in the indoor environment is the design of basements in residential buildings.