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Radon Levels in White County, Illinois

EPA puts White County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and 29.4% of its 34 reported radon tests (2008 to 2017, laboratory totals) were at or above 4 pCi/L. 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

    29.4%

    13.7 pts below IL

    White
    29.4%
    Illinois
    43.1%

    34 tests, 2008 to 2017

  • Median result

    2.9pCi/L

    Below action level

    White
    2.9 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2008 to 2017

  • Tests reported

    34

    91st of 93 by tests

    White
    34
    Cook
    14,199

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2008 to 2017

  • 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

    71 of 93

    Lowest quarter

    White
    29.4%
    Stark
    80.5%

    By share, of 93 with 30+ tests

Read a result for White County

Starts at White County's median, 2.9 pCi/L

2.9pCi/L

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

EPA’s reading of 2.9 pCi/L

Between 2 and 4 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 between 2 and 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends considering a fix when the level is between 2 and 4 pCi/L. White County's median reported result, 2008 to 2017.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

White County, At a glance

White County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential

White 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 White County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory

Reported results by concentration band, White County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
Under 2 pCi/L: 35%2 to 4 pCi/L: 35%4 pCi/L and above: 30%

Of 34 pre-mitigation tests reported to CDC, not homes in this area.

Reported results by concentration band, White County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory: data table
Result bandTests MeasuredShare Measured
Under 2 pCi/L1235.3%
2 to 4 pCi/L1235.3%
4 pCi/L and above1029.4%
What these figures count

These are the 34 tests reported to CDC for White County over 2008 to 2017 (laboratory totals), many from homes being sold or already suspected of a problem: they describe the county's reported tests, not this house.

Measured: CDC tracking data. Figure above: 2008 to 2017, laboratory. Measured data period: 2005 to 2017 (every CDC figure on file).

How to read these figures

White County, Compared

White County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

White County's 34 reported tests over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals had a middle value of 2.9 pCi/L and a maximum of 7.9 pCi/L, and 29.4% reached 4 pCi/L. Illinois as a whole (102 Illinois counties, pooled) comes to 43.1%: 13.7 points higher than here.

Among its state's counties it ranks 71st of 93 Illinois counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. Statewide for the same period, Stark County reported the highest share (80.5%) and Williamson County the lowest (13.3%).

Below the action level, 12 tests (35.3%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 31.6% statewide, and 12 tests (35.3%) fell between 2 and 4, against 25.3% statewide. CDC's ten-year totals for White County went from 38 tests (2005 to 2014) to 34 (2008 to 2017), the share going from 23.7% to 29.4%.

EPA's 1993 zone map puts White County in Zone 2, a predicted county average between 2 and 4 pCi/L. USGS geology rates 100% of the county's land moderate radon potential.

Next door, the shares run from 15.1% in Wayne County to 43.3% in Gibson County, IN, with Hamilton County and Wayne County below White County.

White County against Illinois, the United States and nearby counties, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from White County
White County3429.4%2.9 pCi/LThis county
Illinois, pooled102 counties, pooled108,90943.1%Not pooled+13.7 points
United States, pooled2,661 counties, pooled2,013,54435.7%Not pooled+6.3 points
Stark Countyhighest in the state8780.5%7.4 pCi/L+51.1 points
Williamson Countylowest in the state60113.3%1.3 pCi/L−16.1 points
Gibson County, INborders it12043.3%3.4 pCi/L+13.9 points
Posey County, INborders it21535.3%2.8 pCi/L+5.9 points
Gallatin County, ILborders it633.3%2.0 pCi/L+3.9 points
Wabash County, ILborders it3432.4%3.0 pCi/L+3.0 points
Hamilton County, ILborders it3023.3%1.9 pCi/L−6.1 points
Edwards County, ILborders it1921.1%2.1 pCi/L−8.3 points
Wayne County, ILborders it8615.1%1.4 pCi/L−14.3 points
Where White County's reported results fell, 2008 to 2017, laboratory, beside Illinois and the United States
ResultWhite County testsWhite County shareIllinois shareU.S. shareAgainst Illinois
Under 2 pCi/L1235.3%31.6%39.6%+3.7 points
2 to 4 pCi/L1235.3%25.3%24.7%+10.0 points
4 pCi/L and above1029.4%43.1%35.7%−13.7 points
White County ranked among the 93 Illinois counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Clinton County66 of 9327236.4%2.8 pCi/L
Macoupin County67 of 9318734.8%2.7 pCi/L
Fayette County68 of 9313333.1%2.7 pCi/L
Wabash County69 of 933432.4%3.0 pCi/L
Lake County70 of 936,75130.2%2.5 pCi/L
White County71 of 933429.4%2.9 pCi/L
Jackson County72 of 9349228.5%2.3 pCi/L
Iroquois County73 of 9341028.0%2.1 pCi/L
Perry County74 of 9317727.7%2.4 pCi/L
Washington County75 of 9313226.5%2.6 pCi/L
Union County76 of 938725.3%1.9 pCi/L
White County ten-year laboratory totals, against Illinois' pooled share
PeriodTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestIllinois, pooledChange from the row before
2008 to 20173429.4%2.9 pCi/L7.9 pCi/L43.1%+4.4 points
2007 to 20164025.0%2.5 pCi/L7.9 pCi/L43.7%Level
2006 to 20154025.0%2.5 pCi/L7.9 pCi/L44.3%+1.3 points
2005 to 20143823.7%2.5 pCi/L7.9 pCi/L43.7%First on file

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

White County, Geology

The ground under White County

Predicted

USGS's geologic map puts all of White County's mapped land in one class: moderate radon potential. 96.8% 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 White County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Southern Central Lowland ProvinceIllinoian glacial deposits, sandstone, and gray shale.Moderate996.8%
Shawnee Hills SectionUnglaciated Ordovician to Pennsylvanian limestone, sandstone, and shale.Moderate102.6%
Wabash LowlandLoess, pre-Wisconsinan glacial deposits, Pennsylvanian shale, sandstone, and carbonate bedrock.Moderate100.6%

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

White County beside the ground around it

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

Share of land by USGS radon potential: White County, the 7 counties bordering it and Illinois
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
White CountyZone 2None100%None
Posey County, INZone 2None100%None
Hamilton CountyZone 2None100%None
Gallatin CountyZone 2None100%None
Wayne CountyZone 2None100%None
Edwards CountyZone 2None100%None
Wabash CountyZone 2None100%None
Gibson County, INZone 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

White County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in White 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

White County, Questions

Questions about radon in White County

Are radon levels high in White County?

Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 29.4% of the radon tests reported to CDC for White County, Illinois were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 2.9 pCi/L. Of 93 Illinois counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 70 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 43.1%.

Which counties border White County?

White County borders 7 counties: Posey County, IN, Hamilton County, IL, Gallatin County, IL, Wayne County, IL, Edwards County, IL, Wabash County, IL and Gibson County, IN.

Products

White County, Products

Testing a home in White County

In White County, 29.4% of 34 tests reported to CDC over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 43.1% pooled across Illinois. In Zone 2 a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in White County; a long-term test tells the year-round average.

Test kits and monitors3

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Best radon monitors for White County homes, compared

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White County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering White County

Calculated by Radon411

White County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in White County

About 13,250 people live in White County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 557 fewer than in 2020 (−4.0%). That works out to 27 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Carmi, has 4,623 residents, 34.9% of the total. Reported testing is thin here: 34 tests over 2008 to 2017, or 2.6 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where Illinois as a whole comes to 8.6.

From Carmi to Burnt Prairie, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads White County's.

The cities and towns in White County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Carmi4,623−4.1%34.9%
Grayvilleextends beyond White County1,483−4.0%Counted whole
Norris City1,083−4.2%8.2%
Enfield771−2.5%5.8%
Crossville605−4.3%4.6%
New Havenextends beyond White County376−5.5%Counted whole
Mill Shoalsextends beyond White County167−4.0%Counted whole
Springerton114−1.7%0.9%
Maunie91−4.2%0.7%
Phillipstown39−4.9%0.3%
Burnt Prairie32−5.9%0.2%

11 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 White County is counted whole, so it has no share.

White County, Homes

Homes in White County

White County is a place of houses on their own lots: 82% of its 6,751 homes are detached single-family houses, against 58% across Illinois. The homes are older than Illinois' as a whole: half were built before 1961 (1970 for Illinois), and 49% date from before 1960. Owners live in 76% of the occupied homes (Illinois: 67%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.

Homes in White County, Illinois, 2019 to 2023
HomesWhite CountyIllinois
Housing units6,7515,443,501
Detached houses82%58%
In buildings of 5 or more3%22%
Mobile homes10%2%
Built before 196049%38%
Built since 20008%16%
Middle year built19611970
Owner-occupied76%67%

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