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Radon Levels in Barton County, Kansas

EPA puts Barton County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and high results are common there: 53.8% of the 39 radon tests reported to CDC (2022) came back 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

How to test this homeFind a certified tester

  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    53.8%

    21.8 pts above KS

    Barton
    53.8%
    Kansas
    32.0%

    39 tests, 2022

  • Median result

    4.1pCi/L

    Action level reached

    Barton
    4.1 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2022

  • Tests reported

    39

    34th of 38 by tests

    Barton
    39
    Johnson
    5,240

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2022

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 1

    Highest potential

    1. Zone 1
    2. 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in Kansas

    4 of 38

    Top quarter

    Barton
    53.8%
    Mitchell
    57.4%

    By share, of 38 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Barton County

Starts at Barton County's median, 4.1 pCi/L

4.1pCi/L

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

EPA’s reading of 4.1 pCi/L

At or above 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 at or above 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends fixing a home when the radon level is 4 pCi/L or higher. Barton County's median reported result, 2022.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

Barton County, At a glance

Barton County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential

EPA puts all of Barton County in and predicts an average indoor of greater than 4 pCi/L (greater than 150 Bq/m³) across the county. That is one forecast for the whole county, not a reading of any address in it; homes above EPA's turn up in all three zones.

USGS geologic potential: High across 76% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Barton County, 2022

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Barton County
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Barton County
YearShare of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L
201628.1%
201737.6%
201863.5%
201924.6%
202037.3%
202125.4%
202253.8%

2022: 53.8%. Across these years the share ran from 24.6% to 63.5%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.

What these figures count

These are the 39 tests reported to CDC for Barton County over 2022, 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: 2022. Measured data period: 2016 to 2022 (every CDC figure on file).

How to read these figures

Barton County, Compared

Barton County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

More than half: 53.8% of the 39 radon tests reported to CDC for Barton County in 2022 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 4th of 38 Kansas counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 21.8 points above the 32.0% pooled from 96 Kansas counties.

The median result, 4.1 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 14.1 pCi/L. The rest split 15.4% under 2 pCi/L and 30.8% from 2 to 4 (Kansas: 45.8% and 22.1%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 53.8% share point the same way here.

No bordering county with a figure for the same period reported a higher share; the closest is Pawnee County at 43.4%, the lowest Rice County at 28.3%. Statewide for the same period, Mitchell County reported the highest share (57.4%) and Crawford County the lowest (5.9%).

The busiest year on file was 2021, with 402 tests reported; the quietest, 2016, had 32.

Over 7 years of annual figures the share rose 25.7 points, from 28.1% in 2016 to 53.8% in 2022; its peak was 63.5% in 2018. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 23.9%; Barton County sits 29.9 points above it.

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Barton County against Kansas2016 to 2022, years with 30 or more tests: Barton County 28.1% to 53.8%, the state's pooled share 32.0% in 2022.
Barton CountyKansas, pooled
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Barton County against Kansas: data table
YearTestsBarton County, at or above 4 pCi/LKansas, pooled
20163228.1%35.4%
20178537.6%37.3%
20188563.5%37.3%
20195724.6%33.7%
20205137.3%31.3%
202140225.4%31.8%
20223953.8%32.0%
Barton County against Kansas, the United States and nearby counties, 2022
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Barton County
Barton County3953.8%4.1 pCi/LThis county
Kansas, pooled96 counties, pooled18,38532.0%Not pooled−21.8 points
United States, pooled853 counties, pooled333,14023.9%Not pooled−29.9 points
Mitchell Countyhighest in the state4757.4%6.2 pCi/L+3.6 points
Crawford Countylowest in the state345.9%0.8 pCi/L−47.9 points
Russell County, KSborders it2075.0%7.5 pCi/L+21.2 points
Stafford County, KSborders it650.0%4.2 pCi/L−3.8 points
Pawnee County, KSborders it5343.4%3.7 pCi/L−10.4 points
Ellsworth County, KSborders it1735.3%3.0 pCi/L−18.5 points
Rush County, KSborders it333.3%3.4 pCi/L−20.5 points
Rice County, KSborders it5328.3%1.8 pCi/L−25.5 points
Where Barton County's reported results fell, 2022, beside Kansas and the United States
ResultBarton County testsBarton County shareKansas shareU.S. shareAgainst Kansas
Under 2 pCi/L615.4%45.8%54.5%−30.4 points
2 to 4 pCi/L1230.8%22.1%21.7%+8.7 points
4 pCi/L and above2153.8%32.0%23.9%+21.8 points
Barton County ranked among the 38 Kansas counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2022
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Mitchell County1 of 384757.4%6.2 pCi/L
Clay County2 of 387755.8%4.8 pCi/L
Cloud County3 of 389754.6%4.3 pCi/L
Barton County4 of 383953.8%4.1 pCi/L
Republic County5 of 383452.9%4.3 pCi/L
Saline County6 of 3872952.3%4.2 pCi/L
McPherson County7 of 3821551.6%4.1 pCi/L
Pawnee County8 of 385343.4%3.7 pCi/L
Atchison County9 of 386041.7%3.3 pCi/L
Johnson County10 of 385,24041.2%3.0 pCi/L
Miami County11 of 3821440.2%3.0 pCi/L
Barton County radon tests by year, against Kansas' pooled share
YearTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestKansas, pooledChange from the row before
20223953.8%4.1 pCi/L14.1 pCi/L32.0%+28.4 points
202140225.4%0.9 pCi/L22.0 pCi/L31.8%−11.9 points
20205137.3%2.3 pCi/L9.2 pCi/L31.3%+12.7 points
20195724.6%2.0 pCi/L30.2 pCi/L33.7%−38.9 points
20188563.5%5.5 pCi/L22.1 pCi/L37.3%+25.9 points
20178537.6%2.5 pCi/L43.5 pCi/L37.3%+9.5 points
20163228.1%2.3 pCi/L12.9 pCi/L35.4%First on file

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

Barton County, Geology

The ground under Barton County

Predicted

Most of the ground under Barton County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 76.1% of its land is high radon potential, with 23.9% moderate. The map puts 76.1% of Barton County in the area it calls Smoky Hills and 23.9% in Arkansas River Lowlands. USGS gives the first a radon index of 12, in the high band (12 to 17), and the second 10, in the moderate band (9 to 11).

USGS's geologic areas under Barton County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Smoky HillsCretaceous marine sandstone, shale, and siltstone covered by discontinuous loess deposits.High1276.1%
Arkansas River LowlandsDune sands and alluvium.Moderate1023.9%

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

Barton County beside the ground around it

Barton County has more high-potential ground than Kansas as a whole: 76.1% of its land against 59.9%. Of the 6 counties that border it, 4 have more high-potential ground, Ellsworth County the most at 100%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Barton County, the 6 counties bordering it and Kansas
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Barton CountyZone 1None23.9%76.1%
Stafford CountyZone 2None97.8%2.2%
Rice CountyZone 1None16.7%83.3%
Rush CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Pawnee CountyZone 1None41.7%58.3%
Ellsworth CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Russell CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Kansas105 counties, pooled by land areaVariesNone40.1%59.9%

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

Local help

Barton County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Barton County

Listed radon businesses with an address in Barton County:

Listed radon professionals by town: Great Bend

What Kansas's program says
Phone
(800) 693-5343

What it means

Barton County, Questions

Questions about radon in Barton County

Are radon levels high in Barton County?

In 2022, 53.8% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Barton County, Kansas were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 4.1 pCi/L. Of 38 Kansas counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 3 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 32.0%.

Which counties border Barton County?

Barton County borders 6 counties: Stafford County, Rice County, Rush County, Pawnee County, Ellsworth County and Russell County.

Products

Barton County, Products

Testing a home in Barton County

In Barton County, 53.8% of 39 tests reported to CDC in 2022 reached 4 pCi/L, against 32.0% pooled across Kansas. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Barton County is the one to know: a long-term test (more than 90 days) or a monitor, with a short-term kit for a first answer.

Test kits and monitors3

See every kit and monitor

Barton County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Barton County

Explore

Barton County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Barton County

Calculated by Radon411

Barton County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Barton County

About 24,790 people live in Barton County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 647 fewer than in 2020 (−2.5%). That works out to 28 people per square mile of land. Great Bend alone is home to 14,266 of them, 57.5% of the total. Together its 9 incorporated places hold 80.1% of those residents; the other 19.9% live outside any of them. Reported testing is thin here: 39 tests over 2022, or 1.6 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where Kansas as a whole comes to 6.2.

From Great Bend to Susank, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Barton County's.

The cities and towns in Barton County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Great Bend14,266−2.9%57.5%
Hoisington2,598−3.5%10.5%
Ellinwood1,969−2.1%7.9%
Claflin542−2.9%2.2%
Pawnee Rock185−3.1%0.7%
Albert123−3.9%0.5%
Olmitz91−1.1%0.4%
Galatia43−2.3%0.2%
Susank29−3.3%0.1%

9 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).

Barton County, Homes

Homes in Barton County

Barton County is a place of houses on their own lots: 78% of its 12,373 homes are detached single-family houses, against 72% across Kansas. The homes are older than Kansas' as a whole: half were built before 1959 (1975 for Kansas), and 52% date from before 1960. 66% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Kansas: 67%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.

Homes in Barton County, Kansas, 2019 to 2023
HomesBarton CountyKansas
Housing units12,3731,285,221
Detached houses78%72%
In buildings of 5 or more6%13%
Mobile homes8%4%
Built before 196052%33%
Built since 20008%20%
Middle year built19591975
Owner-occupied66%67%

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