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Radon Levels in Rowan County, Kentucky

EPA puts Rowan County in Zone 2, its middle radon zone, and 18.9% of its 74 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

    18.9%

    24.8 pts below KY

    Rowan
    18.9%
    Kentucky
    43.7%

    74 tests, 2008 to 2017

  • Median result

    1.6pCi/L

    Below action level

    Rowan
    1.6 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2008 to 2017

  • Tests reported

    74

    44th of 69 by tests

    Rowan
    74
    Jefferson
    6,590

    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 Kentucky

    63 of 69

    Lowest quarter

    Rowan
    18.9%
    Meade
    68.4%

    By share, of 69 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Rowan County

Starts at Rowan County's median, 1.6 pCi/L

1.6pCi/L

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

EPA’s reading of 1.6 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. Rowan County's median reported result, 2008 to 2017.

Interpret this reading

The data

Rowan County, At a glance

Rowan County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 2: moderate predicted potential

Rowan 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 89% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Rowan County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory

Reported results by concentration band, Rowan County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
Under 2 pCi/L: 54%2 to 4 pCi/L: 27%4 pCi/L and above: 19%

Of 74 pre-mitigation tests reported to CDC, not homes in this area.

Reported results by concentration band, Rowan County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory: data table
Result bandTests MeasuredShare Measured
Under 2 pCi/L4054.1%
2 to 4 pCi/L2027.0%
4 pCi/L and above1418.9%
What these figures count

These are the 74 tests reported to CDC for Rowan 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

Rowan County, Compared

Rowan County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

Rowan County's 74 reported tests over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals had a middle value of 1.6 pCi/L and a maximum of 15.8 pCi/L, and 18.9% reached 4 pCi/L. Kentucky as a whole (120 Kentucky counties, pooled) comes to 43.7%: 24.8 points higher than here.

Among its state's counties it ranks 63rd of 69 Kentucky counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. Statewide for the same period, Meade County reported the highest share (68.4%) and Hopkins County the lowest (9.5%).

Below the action level, 40 tests (54.1%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 33.2% statewide, and 20 tests (27.0%) fell between 2 and 4, against 23.1% statewide. CDC's ten-year totals for Rowan County went from 45 tests (2005 to 2014) to 74 (2008 to 2017), the share going from 31.1% to 18.9%.

EPA's 1993 zone map puts Rowan County in Zone 2, a predicted county average between 2 and 4 pCi/L. USGS geology rates 89% of the county's land moderate radon potential.

Next door, the shares run from 22.0% in Menifee County to 31.7% in Carter County.

CDC also counts 6 tests taken after mitigation in Rowan County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.

Rowan County against Kentucky, the United States and nearby counties, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Rowan County
Rowan County7418.9%1.6 pCi/LThis county
Kentucky, pooled120 counties, pooled28,79343.7%Not pooled+24.8 points
United States, pooled2,661 counties, pooled2,013,54435.7%Not pooled+16.8 points
Meade Countyhighest in the state11768.4%8.2 pCi/L+49.5 points
Hopkins Countylowest in the state429.5%1.7 pCi/L−9.4 points
Bath County, KYborders it1241.7%3.1 pCi/L+22.8 points
Elliott County, KYborders it540.0%3.5 pCi/L+21.1 points
Fleming County, KYborders it2236.4%2.9 pCi/L+17.5 points
Lewis County, KYborders it1233.3%2.8 pCi/L+14.4 points
Carter County, KYborders it4131.7%2.2 pCi/L+12.8 points
Menifee County, KYborders it4122.0%1.4 pCi/L+3.1 points
Morgan County, KYborders it185.6%1.2 pCi/L−13.3 points
Where Rowan County's reported results fell, 2008 to 2017, laboratory, beside Kentucky and the United States
ResultRowan County testsRowan County shareKentucky shareU.S. shareAgainst Kentucky
Under 2 pCi/L4054.1%33.2%39.6%+20.9 points
2 to 4 pCi/L2027.0%23.1%24.7%+3.9 points
4 pCi/L and above1418.9%43.7%35.7%−24.8 points
Rowan County ranked among the 69 Kentucky counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Laurel County58 of 6910022.0%1.9 pCi/L
Menifee County59 of 694122.0%1.4 pCi/L
Edmonson County60 of 696221.0%1.6 pCi/L
Daviess County61 of 6914520.0%1.8 pCi/L
Breathitt County62 of 694719.1%1.7 pCi/L
Rowan County63 of 697418.9%1.6 pCi/L
Boyd County64 of 6916817.9%2.1 pCi/L
Todd County65 of 696217.7%1.8 pCi/L
Pike County66 of 698217.1%1.1 pCi/L
Greenup County67 of 6910412.5%2.0 pCi/L
Marshall County68 of 698510.6%1.5 pCi/L
Rowan County ten-year laboratory totals, against Kentucky's pooled share
PeriodTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestKentucky, pooledChange from the row before
2008 to 20177418.9%1.6 pCi/L15.8 pCi/L43.7%−1.8 points
2007 to 20165820.7%1.9 pCi/L14.9 pCi/L45.1%−1.9 points
2006 to 20155322.6%1.9 pCi/L14.9 pCi/L46.4%−8.5 points
2005 to 20144531.1%2.3 pCi/L14.9 pCi/L47.3%First on file

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

Rowan County, Geology

The ground under Rowan County

Predicted

Most of the ground under Rowan County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 89.2% of its land is moderate radon potential, with 10.8% high. The map puts 67.1% of Rowan County in the area it calls Mississippian Plateau and 22.1% in Cumberland Plateau, with one smaller area beside them. USGS gives the first a radon index of 11 and the second 9, both in the moderate band (9 to 11).

USGS's geologic areas under Rowan County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Mississippian PlateauMississippian marine limestones, dolomites, marine sandstones, siltstones, and shales.Moderate1167.1%
Cumberland PlateauPennsylvanian sandstones, siltstones, and shales.Moderate922.1%
New Albany-Chattanooga ShaleDevonian/Mississippian Black shale.High1410.8%

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

Rowan County beside the ground around it

On high-potential ground Rowan County is close to Kentucky as a whole: 10.8% of its land against 18.2%. Of the 7 counties that border it, 3 have more high-potential ground, Fleming County the most at 45.0%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Rowan County, the 7 counties bordering it and Kentucky
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Rowan CountyZone 2None89.2%10.8%
Fleming CountyZone 2None55.0%45.0%
Bath CountyZone 2None64.6%35.4%
Lewis CountyZone 2None59.2%40.8%
Elliott CountyZone 2None100%None
Carter CountyZone 2None100%None
Menifee CountyZone 2None100%None
Morgan CountyZone 2None100%None
Kentucky120 counties, pooled by land areaVaries5.7%76.1%18.2%

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

Local help

Rowan County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Rowan County

What Kentucky's program says
Phone
502-782-2782
Email
Radon@ky.gov

What it means

Rowan County, Questions

Questions about radon in Rowan County

Are radon levels high in Rowan County?

Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 18.9% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Rowan County, Kentucky were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 1.6 pCi/L. Of 69 Kentucky counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 62 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 43.7%.

Which counties border Rowan County?

Rowan County borders 7 counties: Fleming County, Bath County, Lewis County, Elliott County, Carter County, Menifee County and Morgan County.

Products

Rowan County, Products

Testing a home in Rowan County

In Rowan County, 18.9% of 74 tests reported to CDC over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 43.7% pooled across Kentucky. In Zone 2 a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in Rowan County; a long-term test tells the year-round average.

Test kits and monitors3

See every kit and monitor

Best radon monitors for Rowan County homes, compared

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Rowan County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Rowan County

Calculated by Radon411

Rowan County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Rowan County

About 24,476 people live in Rowan County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 238 fewer than in 2020 (−1.0%). That works out to 87 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Morehead, has 6,776 residents, 27.7% of the total. Together its 2 incorporated places hold 28.8% of those residents; the other 71.2% live outside any of them. Reported testing is thin here: 74 tests over 2008 to 2017, or 3.0 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), where Kentucky as a whole comes to 6.3.

From Morehead to Lakeview Heights, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Rowan County's.

The cities and towns in Rowan County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Morehead6,776−5.1%27.7%
Lakeview Heights271−0.7%1.1%

2 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).

Rowan County, Homes

Homes in Rowan County

Of Rowan County's 10,577 homes, 59% are detached houses, against 68% across Kentucky; 24% are mobile homes. Much of Rowan County is recent building: 31% of its homes have gone up since 2000 and the middle year built is 1992, against 1982 for Kentucky. 63% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Kentucky: 68%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.

Homes in Rowan County, Kentucky, 2019 to 2023
HomesRowan CountyKentucky
Housing units10,5772,010,655
Detached houses59%68%
In buildings of 5 or more8%12%
Mobile homes24%11%
Built before 19609%22%
Built since 200031%24%
Middle year built19921982
Owner-occupied63%68%

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