This year’s Radon Outcomes on Mitigation Solutions (ROOMS) conference is being held in Barcelona from 24-26 November. The conference is being jointly hosted by the European Radon Association (ERA) and the Col·legi de l’Arquitectura Tècnica de Barcelona (Cateb). The venue is Barcelona Association of Technical Architecture, Carrer del Bon Pastor, 5 · 08021 and registration remains open until 16 November.
ROOMS is aimed at national and international scientific community members, radon testers, diagnosticians, mitigators, educators, public stakeholders, business people and authorities and aims to exchange information on solutions to radon problems in new and existing buildings.
On Tuesday 24 November, following registration and introductions, the day is split into two separate sessions – Legislation and Monitoring. In the Legislation section, the following presentations are scheduled to take place:
13:50 – 14:10: “Bridging interpretative gaps in the Italian implementation of the Basic Safety Standards Directive on radon: the support activity of the Italian National Institute of Health.” Christian Di Carlo · Istituto Superiore di Sanità.
14:10 – 14:30: “Radon in New Buildings: Identifying Weak Points in the Czech Radon Prevention System.” Marcela Adamova · State office for Nuclear Safety, Prague, Czech Republic.
14:30 – 14:50: “What influences the choice to do measures against radon? Results from a questionnaire.” Maria Larsson · Norwegian Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority.
14:50 – 15:10: Discussion (questions).
In the Monitoring section, the following presentations are scheduled:
15:30 – 15:50: “How to reduce the exposure of workers at specific radon exposed work areas – Austrian experiences and lessons learned.” Angelika Kunte · Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety.
15:50 – 16:10: “Indoor Air Quality Assessment in Existing Buildings: From Measurement to Mitigation Strategies.” Alba García Rodríguez · Spanish General Council of Technical Architecture.
16:10 – 16:40: “Year-to-year variations of radon concentrations in houses in North Yorkshire, England.” Zornitza Daraktchieva · UK Health Security Agency.
16:40 – 17:00: “Radon entry rate determination for mitigation purposes – how far can we go?” Krasimir Mitev · Sofia University.
17:00 – 17:20: “Modelling the impact of building materials and water use on indoor radon concentration.” Bernard Collignan · Centre Scientifique et Technique du Bâtiment.
17:20 – 17:40: “Thoron in clay buildings.” Wolfgang Ringer · Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety.
17:40 – 18:00: Discussion (questions).
18:00 – 19:00: Welcome cocktail.
On Wednesday 25 November, the day is split into three separate sections: Remediation, Post-Fitment Operations and Problem Solving. In Remediation, the agenda is as follows:
09:10 – 09:30: “Passive versus fan-assisted sub-slab depressurization: results from remedial interventions in three buildings of an Italian university campus.” Andrea Maiorana · Istituto Superiore di Sanità.
09:30 – 09:50: “Radon mitigation in existing buildings through mechanical ventilation dilution using heat recovery units.” Carlos Martínez Real · SODECA S.L.U.
09:50 – 10:10: “Radon Protection Beyond Compliance: Material Selection, Durability and Installation.” DANOSA.
10:10 – 10:30: “Radon Remediation of a Residential Building in Le Locle 2 (Switzerland): Diagnosis, Mitigation Strategy and Lessons Learned.” Matias Cesari · Western Switzerland Center for Indoor Air Quality and Radon.
11:00 – 11:30: “Radon Protection in Social Housing: Challenges and Solutions in the Construction of a Below-Ground Building.” Molins.
11:30 – 11:50: “On the relevance of dynamic studies for indoor radon modelling and mitigation methods.” Lluis Font · Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.
In the Post-Fitment Operations section of the day, the following presentations will be delivered:
11:50 – 12:10: “High temporal resolution radon monitoring in mitigated kindergartens.” Ivelina Dimitrova · Sofia University.
12:10 – 12:30: “Floor-specific associations of indoor and outdoor microclimatic parameters with radon remediation performance in a historic building in a karst area.” Teresa Botti · Istituto Nazionale per l’Assicurazione contro gli Infortuni sul Lavoro, Italy.
12:30 – 13:10: Discussion (questions: remediation/post-fitment operations).
13:10 – 15:00: Lunch.
The final session of the day, explores Problem Solving:
15:00 – 15:20: “REMÉDIER: research project on cost and efficiency of radon mitigation actions in dwellings.” Eymeric Lafranque · Nuclear Protection Evaluation Centre, France.
15:20 – 15:40: “Exploring Low-Cost Approaches to Assess Radon Exhalation Potential from Walls.” Isabel Sicilia · Eduardo Torroja Institute for construction sciences. Spanish National Research Council.
16:00 – 16:20: “Are there more cost-effective preventive measures then radon membranes?” Per Nilsson · Unirad.
16:20 – 16:40: “Radon control and mitigation in new and existing buildings in Canada.” Robert Stainforth · Health Canada, Government of Canada.
16:40 – 17:00: Presentation TBC.
17:00 – 17:20: Discussion (questions)
17:20 – 18:00: Final discussion.
18:00 – 20:00: ROOMS workshop dinner (conference venue – Cateb).
On the final day of the ROOMS conference, Thursday 26 November, a site visit is planned with transport available from and to Cateb.
