Question

How does improving the energy efficiency levels of a home affect radon levels?

Answer 1

Hint: Radon is a gas which is usually naturally occurring and hence can accumulate in places where the ventilation is poor. Increasing the energy efficiency of a home is to use less energy that enables us to save energy but as the energy efficiency of our homes increase, they tend to be more packed.

Complete answer:
Improving the energy efficiency of homes is to use less energy for the same tasks, it means that less energy will be wasted and hence saved.
There are many advantages of improving the energy efficiency of homes. One of them is to save money. Also having more energy efficient homes will also reduce the exchange of air inside and outside homes.
Homes having double glazed windows or insulated walls tend to be very packed homes with very little ventilation. When we improve the energy efficiency of a home, It seems to be more tightly packed and hence the radon gas gets accumulated inside the closed space. Exposure to high radon levels is very harmful to humans.
Radon gas is naturally occurring and hence is present everywhere though it is important that a close space be properly ventilated otherwise it can get accumulated
Therefore, increasing the energy efficiency of a home increases the radon levels inside the homes which can be very harmful.

Note:
Radon is a non-reactive radioactive gas. Exposure to radon gas is one of the leading causes for lung cancer. Radon is also naturally occurring as it is formed when the radium, uranium and thorium break down in water, soil and rocks etc. It is a colourless, odorless and tasteless gas.