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Radon Levels in Wayne County, Illinois

EPA puts Wayne County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and only 6 radon tests from it are on file with CDC (2017). Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.

Data checked By Radon411Methodology

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  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    14.9%

    28.8 pts below IL

    Wayne
    14.9%
    Illinois
    43.7%

    87 tests, 2007 to 2016

  • Median result

    1.4pCi/L

    Below action level

    Wayne
    1.4 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2007 to 2016

  • Tests reported

    87

    75th of 92 by tests

    Wayne
    87
    Cook
    13,699

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2007 to 2016

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 2

    Moderate potential

    1. 1
    2. Zone 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts 2 to 4 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in Illinois

    90 of 92

    Lowest quarter

    Wayne
    14.9%
    Stark
    79.4%

    By share, of 92 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Wayne County

Starts at Wayne County's median, 1.4 pCi/L

1.4pCi/L

EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.

EPA’s reading of 1.4 pCi/L

Below 2 pCi/L

  1. Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
  2. 2 to 4consider a fix
  3. 4 and aboveEPA says fix it

This result is below 2 pCi/L, the level at which EPA says a fix should be considered. Wayne County's median reported result, 2007 to 2016.

Interpret this reading

The data

Wayne County, At a glance

Wayne County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential

Wayne County is a county: EPA's forecast for it as a whole is an average indoor of 2 to 4 pCi/L (75 to 150 Bq/m³). It describes no single address, and homes above EPA's are found in every zone, this one included.

USGS geologic potential: Moderate across 100% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Wayne County, 2017

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Wayne County
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Wayne County
YearShare of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L
20140.0%
20150.0%
20170.0%

2017: 0.0%. Across these years the share ran from 0.0% to 0.0%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.

What these figures count

Only 6 tests were reported to CDC for Wayne County over 2017, and tests are often run on homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: so few describe neither the county nor this house.

Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2017. Measured data period: 2005 to 2017 (every CDC figure on file).

How to read these figures

Wayne County, Compared

Wayne County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

Wayne County reports fewer high tests than Illinois overall. 14.9% of its 87 tests over the 2007 to 2016 laboratory totals were at or above 4 pCi/L. That is 28.8 points below the 43.7% pooled from 102 Illinois counties.

The newest figure, in 2017, counts only 6 tests (0.0% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 87-test figure.

Ordered from highest share down, it comes 90th of 92 Illinois counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 35.8%; Wayne County sits 20.9 points below it.

Next door, the shares run from 17.4% in Clay County to 25.0% in White County. Zone 2 on EPA's map (predicted average between 2 and 4 pCi/L) and a 14.9% share point the same way here.

Half the tests came in under 1.4 pCi/L and half over it; the single highest reached 15.2 pCi/L. The rest split 64.4% under 2 pCi/L and 20.7% from 2 to 4 (Illinois: 31.2% and 25.1%).

The busiest year on file was 2014, with 18 tests reported; the quietest, 2015, had 3.

Wayne County against Illinois, the United States and nearby counties, 2007 to 2016, laboratory
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Wayne County
Wayne County8714.9%1.4 pCi/LThis county
Illinois, pooled102 counties, pooled105,29343.7%Not pooled+28.8 points
United States, pooled2,666 counties, pooled1,939,02535.8%Not pooled+20.9 points
Stark Countyhighest in the state6879.4%7.8 pCi/L+64.5 points
Johnson Countylowest in the state4912.2%1.8 pCi/L−2.7 points
White County, ILborders it4025.0%2.5 pCi/L+10.1 points
Hamilton County, ILborders it3023.3%1.9 pCi/L+8.4 points
Jefferson County, ILborders it32422.8%1.9 pCi/L+7.9 points
Edwards County, ILborders it1822.2%2.1 pCi/L+7.3 points
Marion County, ILborders it38719.9%1.8 pCi/L+5.0 points
Richland County, ILborders it14019.3%1.9 pCi/L+4.4 points
Clay County, ILborders it6917.4%1.1 pCi/L+2.5 points
Where Wayne County's reported results fell, 2007 to 2016, laboratory, beside Illinois and the United States
ResultWayne County testsWayne County shareIllinois shareU.S. shareAgainst Illinois
Under 2 pCi/L5664.4%31.2%39.6%+33.2 points
2 to 4 pCi/L1820.7%25.1%24.6%−4.4 points
4 pCi/L and above1314.9%43.7%35.8%−28.8 points
Wayne County ranked among the 92 Illinois counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2007 to 2016, laboratory
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Crawford County82 of 9217519.4%1.8 pCi/L
Richland County83 of 9214019.3%1.9 pCi/L
Franklin County84 of 9221019.0%1.8 pCi/L
Saline County85 of 928318.1%1.7 pCi/L
Clay County86 of 926917.4%1.1 pCi/L
Clark County87 of 927517.3%1.8 pCi/L
Massac County88 of 923517.1%2.2 pCi/L
Lawrence County89 of 924615.2%1.8 pCi/L
Wayne County90 of 928714.9%1.4 pCi/L
Williamson County91 of 9260513.6%1.3 pCi/L
Johnson County92 of 924912.2%1.8 pCi/L
Wayne County radon tests by year, against Illinois' pooled share
YearTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestIllinois, pooledChange from the row before
201760.0%1.6 pCi/L2.0 pCi/L33.7%Level
201530.0%1.1 pCi/L1.1 pCi/L36.6%Level
2014180.0%1.4 pCi/L1.7 pCi/L37.8%First on file

Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.

Wayne County, Geology

The ground under Wayne County

Predicted

USGS's geologic map puts all of Wayne County's mapped land in one class: moderate radon potential. All of it lies in the area the map calls Southern Central Lowland Province, to which USGS gives a radon index of 9, in the moderate band (9 to 11).

USGS's geologic areas under Wayne County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Southern Central Lowland ProvinceIllinoian glacial deposits, sandstone, and gray shale.Moderate9100%

Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.

Wayne County beside the ground around it

Across Illinois 64.5% of the land is rated high; none of Wayne County's is. Of the 7 counties that border it, none has as large a share of moderate-potential ground; Clay County comes nearest at 100%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Wayne County, the 7 counties bordering it and Illinois
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Wayne CountyZone 2None100%None
Edwards CountyZone 2None100%None
White CountyZone 2None100%None
Hamilton CountyZone 2None100%None
Jefferson CountyZone 2None100%None
Clay CountyZone 2None100%None
Richland CountyZone 2None100%None
Marion CountyZone 2None100%None
Illinois102 counties, pooled by land areaVaries0.9%34.5%64.5%

The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.

Local help

Wayne County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Wayne County

What Illinois's program says
Phone
(800) 325-1245
Licensing of radon professionals
The Agency also licenses and regulates the individuals who provide radon measurement and mitigation to the public.
Disclosure when a home is sold or rented
Illinois Radon Awareness Act - This is the legislation that requires the seller to provide to the buyer of any interest in residential real property the IEMA-OHS pamphlet entitled "Radon Testing Guidelines for Real Estate Transactions" and the Illinois Disclosure of Information on Radon Hazards.

What it means

Wayne County, Questions

Questions about radon in Wayne County

Are radon levels high in Wayne County?

In 2017, 0.0% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Wayne County, Illinois were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 1.6 pCi/L. Of 92 Illinois counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 89 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 43.7%.

Which counties border Wayne County?

Wayne County borders 7 counties: Edwards County, White County, Hamilton County, Jefferson County, Clay County, Richland County and Marion County.

Products

Wayne County, Products

Testing a home in Wayne County

In Wayne County, 14.9% of 87 tests reported to CDC over the 2007 to 2016 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 43.7% pooled across Illinois. In Zone 2 a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in Wayne County; a long-term test tells the year-round average.

Test kits and monitors3

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Best radon monitors for Wayne County homes, compared

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Wayne County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Wayne County

Calculated by Radon411

Wayne County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Wayne County

About 15,882 people live in Wayne County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 261 fewer than in 2020 (−1.6%). That works out to 22 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Fairfield, has 4,794 residents, 30.2% of the total. Reported testing is thin here: 87 tests over 2007 to 2016, or 5.5 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where Illinois as a whole comes to 8.3.

From Fairfield to Keenes, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Wayne County's.

The cities and towns in Wayne County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Fairfield4,794−2.0%30.2%
Wayne City986−1.3%6.2%
Cisne612−1.3%3.9%
Jeffersonville349−1.7%2.2%
Mill Shoalsextends beyond Wayne County167−4.0%Counted whole
Sims164−1.2%1.0%
Mount Erie96−2.0%0.6%
Johnsonville80−2.4%0.5%
Golden Gate61−1.6%0.4%
Keenes48Level0.3%

10 incorporated places, as listed in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 place reference files. Residents: U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025). A place that extends beyond Wayne County is counted whole, so it has no share.

Wayne County, Homes

Homes in Wayne County

Of Wayne County's 7,699 homes, 73% are detached houses, against 58% across Illinois; 21% are mobile homes. Half of its homes were built before 1973, close to Illinois' 1970: 38% date from before 1960 and 18% from 2000 or later. Owners live in 79% of the occupied homes (Illinois: 67%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.

Homes in Wayne County, Illinois, 2019 to 2023
HomesWayne CountyIllinois
Housing units7,6995,443,501
Detached houses73%58%
In buildings of 5 or more4%22%
Mobile homes21%2%
Built before 196038%38%
Built since 200018%16%
Middle year built19731970
Owner-occupied79%67%

Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.