The Workshop was organised by the Canfranc Underground Laboratory (LSC), with the participation of the Spanish Nuclear Safety Council (CSN) and the Spanish Society for Radiological Protection (SEPR), and was held on 19, 20 and 21 October at the Laboratory.
The meeting brought together researchers and representatives from different fields interested in sharing progress, exchanging experiences and exploring new opportunities for collaboration in radon research and protection.
Over the three days, the Workshop approached radon protection from many angles. Topics included the National Radon Plan and the regulatory framework, the health effects of this gas, progress in research and monitoring, metrology and the instruments used to produce radon maps, as well as radon in workplaces and strategies for diagnosis and remediation. The programme also had a social dimension, devoted to exploring how citizen science and public participation can help to address this challenge.
Ibercivis took part in the session on the “Social dimension of radon: social studies, communication, training and citizen science” with the talk “Motivations, barriers and lessons learned from public participation in radiological monitoring: the OpenRed case”, given by Olga Varela Machado. The talk presented the results of an analysis of participation in OpenRed, the citizen network promoted by Fundación Ibercivis and the Spanish Nuclear Safety Council for the collaborative measurement of ambient gamma radiation in Spain. The study looks at the motivations, barriers and lessons learned of the participants, identifying different profiles and possible strategies to help them stay involved in citizen science projects. The hope is that this experience in citizen measurement of gamma radiation can be adapted to measuring radon within the network.
Attending the Workshop was also an opportunity to talk with researchers and others working in radiological protection, learn about their needs and reflect together on the role the public can play in this field. One of the main conclusions is that public participation has great potential to help expand knowledge about radon in Spain.
Citizen science to extend radon measurements
One of the most interesting aspects of the meeting was seeing the potential of citizen science to contribute to efforts to measure and characterise radon in Spain. At the current stage of research, expanding the available information requires a larger number of measurements, and public participation could help to extend data collection and complement the work of research teams.
The OpenRed experience offers relevant lessons for exploring this possibility, such as how to make participation easier, what barriers hinder access to measuring devices, how to keep people motivated in the long term and how to communicate the value of citizens’ contributions.
Applying citizen science to radon monitoring does, however, require adapting devices, measurement protocols and validation procedures to the specific characteristics of this gas and to the aims of each study.
Taking part in the Canfranc meeting thus reinforces Ibercivis’s interest in continuing to explore ways for science and the public to work together in radiological protection, with the aim of helping to generate knowledge that is useful to society.
