Long-term kit
RL416 long-term radon test kit, lab fee included
- Lab fee included
Method: Alpha track
In home: 90 days to 12 months
Locations and reports
Radon Levels in Kearney County, Nebraska
EPA puts Kearney County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and only 24 radon tests from it are on file with CDC (2023). Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
51.1%
3.4 pts above NE
- Kearney
- 51.1%
- Nebraska
- 47.7%
276 tests, 2017
Median result
4.0pCi/L
Action level reached
- Kearney
- 4.0 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2017
Tests reported
276
34th of 74 by tests
- Kearney
- 276
- Douglas
- 18,306
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2017
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
49 of 74
Middle half
- Kearney
- 51.1%
- Webster
- 84.6%
By share, of 74 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Kearney County
Starts at Kearney County's median, 4.0 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 4.0 pCi/L
At or above 4 pCi/L
- Under 20 to 1.9 pCi/L
- 2 to 4consider a fix
- 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. Kearney County's median reported result, 2017.
The data
Kearney County, At a glance
Kearney County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Kearney County in
USGS geologic potential: High across 83% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Kearney County, 2023
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 57.4% |
| 2015 | 59.0% |
| 2016 | 65.5% |
| 2017 | 51.1% |
| 2018 | 54.2% |
| 2019 | 58.3% |
| 2020 | 48.4% |
| 2021 | 54.8% |
| 2022 | 47.2% |
| 2023 | 66.7% |
2023: 66.7%. Across these years the share ran from 47.2% to 66.7%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
Only 24 tests were reported to CDC for Kearney County over 2023, 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: 2023. Measured data period: 2005 to 2023 (every CDC figure on file).
Kearney County, Compared
Kearney County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411More than half: 51.1% of the 276 radon tests reported to CDC for Kearney County in 2017 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 49th of 74 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 3.4 points above the 47.7% pooled from 92 Nebraska counties.
The newest figure, in 2023, counts only 24 tests (66.7% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 276-test figure.
The median result, 4.0 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 20.8 pCi/L. The rest split 21.7% under 2 pCi/L and 27.2% from 2 to 4 (Nebraska: 25.6% and 26.7%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 51.1% share point the same way here.
4 of its 6 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Webster County at 84.6%; Buffalo County reported 48.2%. Statewide for the same period, Webster County reported the highest share (84.6%) and Cherry County the lowest (15.4%).
The busiest year on file was 2017, with 276 tests reported; the quietest, 2023, had 24.
Over 9 years of annual figures the share fell 10.2 points, from 57.4% in 2014 to 47.2% in 2022; its peak was 65.5% in 2016. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 31.7%; Kearney County sits 19.4 points above it.
Kearney CountyNebraska, pooled
47.2% % of tests34.0% % of tests
| Year | Tests | Kearney County, at or above 4 pCi/L | Nebraska, pooled |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 141 | 57.4% | 50.5% |
| 2015 | 183 | 59.0% | 53.3% |
| 2016 | 174 | 65.5% | 47.4% |
| 2017 | 276 | 51.1% | 47.7% |
| 2018 | 249 | 54.2% | 44.5% |
| 2019 | 180 | 58.3% | 44.3% |
| 2020 | 93 | 48.4% | 42.2% |
| 2021 | 93 | 54.8% | 34.9% |
| 2022 | 36 | 47.2% | 34.0% |
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Kearney County, Geology
The ground under Kearney County
PredictedMost of the ground under Kearney County is one class on USGS's geologic map: 82.9% of its land is high radon potential, with 17.1% moderate. The map puts 82.4% of Kearney County in the area it calls Loess over K-T and 17.1% in Loess over Tertiary sediments, with one smaller area beside them. USGS gives the first a radon index of 13, in the high band (12 to 17), and the second 11, in the moderate band (9 to 11).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loess over K-T | Loess-mantled Tertiary and Cretaceous bedrock. | High | 13 | 82.4% |
| Loess over Tertiary sediments | Tertiary bedrock covered by varying thicknesses of loess. | Moderate | 11 | 17.1% |
| Pre-Wisconsin glacial deposits | Loess-mantled glacial drift. | High | 13 | 0.6% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Kearney County beside the ground around it
Kearney County has more high-potential ground than Nebraska as a whole: 82.9% of its land against 40.9%. Of the 6 counties that border it, 5 have more high-potential ground, Harlan County the most at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Kearney County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Kearney County
Listed radon businesses with an address in Kearney 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.
Listed radon professionals by town: Minden
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
Kearney County, Questions
Questions about radon in Kearney County
Are radon levels high in Kearney County?
In 2023, 66.7% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Kearney County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 5.4 pCi/L. Of 74 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 48 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 47.7%.
Which counties border Kearney County?
Kearney County borders 6 counties: Franklin County, Adams County, Phelps County, Buffalo County, Harlan County and Webster County.
Products
Kearney County, Products
Testing a home in Kearney County
In Kearney County, 51.1% of 276 tests reported to CDC in 2017 reached 4 pCi/L, against 47.7% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Kearney 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
Monitor
Hello Radon C battery radon monitor with an e-ink screen
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Battery
- Screen
Method: Alpha spectrometry
First reading: Within 24 hours
Short-term kitFirst Alert
RD1 short-term charcoal radon test kit
- Lab fee included
Method: Charcoal
In home: 2 to 4 days
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Kearney County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Kearney County
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Kearney County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Kearney County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Webster CountyEPA zone 1
84.6%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.0 pCi/L · 78 tests · 33.5 points above Kearney County
- Radon levels in Harlan CountyEPA zone 1
72.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 7.0 pCi/L · 75 tests · 20.9 points above Kearney County
- Radon levels in Adams CountyEPA zone 1
56.9%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.2 pCi/L · 912 tests · 5.8 points above Kearney County
- Radon levels in Phelps CountyEPA zone 1
56.1%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.3 pCi/L · 444 tests · 5.0 points above Kearney County
- Radon levels in Franklin CountyEPA zone 1
50.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.6 pCi/L · 66 tests · 1.1 points below Kearney County
- Radon levels in Buffalo CountyEPA zone 2
48.2%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.7 pCi/L · 1,893 tests · 2.9 points below Kearney County
Kearney County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Kearney County
The Census Bureau estimates 6,790 residents in Kearney County for July 1, 2025, 100 more than in 2020 (+1.5%). That works out to 13 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Minden, has 3,133 residents, 46.1% of the total. Together its 5 incorporated places hold 64.1% of those residents; the other 35.9% live outside any of them. CDC's 276 reported tests for 2017 work out to 40.6 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Nebraska's 32.5.
From Minden to Norman, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Kearney County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minden | 3,133 | +0.3% | 46.1% |
| Axtell | 777 | +6.0% | 11.4% |
| Wilcox | 327 | −0.9% | 4.8% |
| Heartwell | 82 | +2.5% | 1.2% |
| Norman | 35 | Level | 0.5% |
5 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).
Kearney County, Homes
Homes in Kearney County
Kearney County is a place of houses on their own lots: 90% of its 2,985 homes are detached single-family houses, against 72% across Nebraska. The homes are older than Nebraska's as a whole: half were built before 1964 (1975 for Nebraska), and 46% date from before 1960. Owners live in 78% of the occupied homes (Nebraska: 67%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.
| Homes | Kearney County | Nebraska |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 2,985 | 855,631 |
| Detached houses | 90% | 72% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 2% | 17% |
| Mobile homes | 5% | 3% |
| Built before 1960 | 46% | 32% |
| Built since 2000 | 10% | 22% |
| Middle year built | 1964 | 1975 |
| Owner-occupied | 78% | 67% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.