Long-term kit
RL116 long-term radon test kit
- Lab fee extra
Method: Alpha track
In home: 90 days to 12 months
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in Dakota County, Nebraska
EPA puts Dakota County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and most reported tests there come back low, though 3.1% of 130 (2023) reached 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
3.1%
35.1 pts below NE
- Dakota
- 3.1%
- Nebraska
- 38.2%
130 tests, 2023
Median result
0.4pCi/L
Below action level
- Dakota
- 0.4 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2023
Tests reported
130
11th of 33 by tests
- Dakota
- 130
- Lancaster
- 4,058
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2023
EPA radon zone
Zone 1
Highest potential
- Zone 1
- 2
- 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors
Rank in Nebraska
33 of 33
Lowest quarter
- Dakota
- 3.1%
- Gage
- 79.8%
By share, of 33 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Dakota County
Starts at Dakota County's median, 0.4 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 0.4 pCi/L
Below 2 pCi/L
- Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
- 2 to 4consider a fix
- 4 and aboveEPA says fix it
This result is below 2 pCi/L, the level at which EPA says a fix should be considered. Dakota County's median reported result, 2023.
The data
Dakota County, At a glance
Dakota County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Dakota County in
USGS geologic potential: High across 100% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Dakota County, 2023
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 64.2% |
| 2015 | 57.3% |
| 2016 | 66.7% |
| 2017 | 57.0% |
| 2018 | 59.8% |
| 2019 | 63.4% |
| 2020 | 17.9% |
| 2021 | 11.9% |
| 2022 | 31.5% |
| 2023 | 3.1% |
2023: 3.1%. Across these years the share ran from 3.1% to 66.7%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
These are the 130 tests reported to CDC for Dakota County over 2023, 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: 2023. Measured data period: 2005 to 2023 (every CDC figure on file).
Dakota County, Compared
Dakota County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411Only 4 of 130 radon tests reported for Dakota County in 2023 reached 4 pCi/L (3.1%). The median result, 0.4 pCi/L, sits below 2, well under EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 18.0 pCi/L.
Across 86 Nebraska counties pooled together, 38.2% of tests reached that level, so Dakota County runs 35.1 points below its state. Against the national pool of 33.4%, the gap is 30.3 points lower. Its place in the state: 33rd of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period.
The reported tests do not follow EPA's Zone 1 label for Dakota County (predicted average above 4 pCi/L): 3.1% of them reached 4 pCi/L, fewer than that label suggests.
Below the action level, 120 tests (92.3%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 39.2% statewide, and 6 tests (4.6%) fell between 2 and 4, against 22.6% statewide. Over 10 years of annual figures the share fell 61.1 points, from 64.2% in 2014 to 3.1% in 2023; its peak was 66.7% in 2016. USGS geology rates 100% of the county's land high radon potential.
The busiest year on file was 2021, with 885 tests reported; the quietest, 2022, had 73.
Dakota CountyNebraska, pooled
3.1% % of tests38.2% % of tests
| Year | Tests | Dakota County, at or above 4 pCi/L | Nebraska, pooled |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 285 | 64.2% | 50.5% |
| 2015 | 267 | 57.3% | 53.3% |
| 2016 | 432 | 66.7% | 47.4% |
| 2017 | 495 | 57.0% | 47.7% |
| 2018 | 306 | 59.8% | 44.5% |
| 2019 | 426 | 63.4% | 44.3% |
| 2020 | 285 | 17.9% | 42.2% |
| 2021 | 885 | 11.9% | 34.9% |
| 2022 | 73 | 31.5% | 34.0% |
| 2023 | 130 | 3.1% | 38.2% |
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Dakota County, Geology
The ground under Dakota County
PredictedUSGS's geologic map puts all of Dakota County's mapped land in one class: high radon potential. All of it lies in the area the map calls Pre-Wisconsin glacial deposits, to which USGS gives a radon index of 13, in the high band (12 to 17).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Wisconsin glacial deposits | Loess-mantled glacial drift. | High | 13 | 99.9% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Dakota County beside the ground around it
Dakota County has more high-potential ground than Nebraska as a whole: 100% of its land against 40.9%. Of the 4 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Dixon County comes nearest at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Dakota County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Dakota County
- Office of Environmental Health Hazards & Indoor AirOffice of Environmental Health Hazards & Indoor Air, run by Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, licenses or certifies radon professionals and offers free or discounted test kits, and answers questions about testing and mitigation in Nebraska.Visit the program’s page(opens in a new tab)
- Free and low-cost kitsThe program says:
Some local programs distribute radon kits for free or a reduced cost.
- Compare kits
- Professionals in Nebraska116 professionals are listed in Nebraska.
What Nebraska's program says
- Phone
- (402) 471-1005
- Licensing of radon professionals
If radon testing is done in schools, offices, or other places of work, it must be done by a licensed radon measurement business.
What it means
Dakota County, Questions
Questions about radon in Dakota County
Are radon levels high in Dakota County?
In 2023, 3.1% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Dakota County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 0.4 pCi/L. Of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 32 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 38.2%.
Which counties border Dakota County?
Dakota County borders 4 counties: Dixon County, NE, Thurston County, NE, Woodbury County, IA and Union County, SD.
Products
Dakota County, Products
Testing a home in Dakota County
In Dakota County, 3.1% of 130 tests reported to CDC in 2023 reached 4 pCi/L, against 38.2% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Dakota 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
MonitorAEGTEST
HOUND-1011S rechargeable radon detector with a screen
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Battery
- Alarm
- Screen
Method: Semiconductor sensor
First reading: Within 12 hours
Short-term kit
PicoCan short-term charcoal canister radon test
- Lab fee included
Method: Charcoal
In home: 48 to 96 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Dakota County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Dakota County
Explore
Dakota County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Dakota County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Dixon County, NEEPA zone 1
72.7%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 9.1 pCi/L · 22 tests · 69.6 points above Dakota County
- Radon levels in Thurston County, NEEPA zone 1
50.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.0 pCi/L · 8 tests · 46.9 points above Dakota County
- Radon levels in Woodbury County, IAEPA zone 1
No CDC figure for 2023; its page reads it against its own neighbours.
- Radon levels in Union County, SDEPA zone 1
No CDC figure for 2023; its page reads it against its own neighbours.
Dakota County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Dakota County
The Census Bureau estimates 21,687 residents in Dakota County for July 1, 2025, 143 more than in 2020 (+0.7%). That works out to 82 people per square mile of land. South Sioux City alone is home to 14,158 of them, 65.3% of the total. CDC's 130 reported tests for 2023 work out to 6.0 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Nebraska's 5.5.
From South Sioux City to Hubbard, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Dakota County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Sioux City | 14,158 | +0.9% | 65.3% |
| Dakota City | 2,080 | Level | 9.6% |
| Emersonextends beyond Dakota County | 825 | −0.6% | Counted whole |
| Homer | 523 | −1.5% | 2.4% |
| Jackson | 227 | +9.7% | 1.0% |
| Hubbard | 170 | +7.6% | 0.8% |
6 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 Dakota County is counted whole, so it has no share.
Dakota County, Homes
Homes in Dakota County
Of Dakota County's 7,795 homes, 67% are detached houses, against 72% across Nebraska; 17% are in buildings of five or more homes. Half of its homes were built before 1974, close to Nebraska's 1975: 32% date from before 1960 and 14% from 2000 or later. 65% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (Nebraska: 67%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | Dakota County | Nebraska |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 7,795 | 855,631 |
| Detached houses | 67% | 72% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 17% | 17% |
| Mobile homes | 9% | 3% |
| Built before 1960 | 32% | 32% |
| Built since 2000 | 14% | 22% |
| Middle year built | 1974 | 1975 |
| Owner-occupied | 65% | 67% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.