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 Nemaha County, Nebraska
EPA puts Nemaha County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and high results are common there: 59.4% of the 32 radon tests reported to CDC (2023) 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
Share at 4+ pCi/L
59.4%
21.2 pts above NE
- Nemaha
- 59.4%
- Nebraska
- 38.2%
32 tests, 2023
Median result
5.7pCi/L
Action level reached
- Nemaha
- 5.7 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2023
Tests reported
32
33rd of 33 by tests
- Nemaha
- 32
- 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
20 of 33
Middle half
- Nemaha
- 59.4%
- Gage
- 79.8%
By share, of 33 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Nemaha County
Starts at Nemaha County's median, 5.7 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 5.7 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. Nemaha County's median reported result, 2023.
The data
Nemaha County, At a glance
Nemaha County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Nemaha 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 Nemaha County, 2023
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 40.6% |
| 2015 | 62.1% |
| 2016 | 65.9% |
| 2017 | 61.9% |
| 2018 | 66.9% |
| 2019 | 58.3% |
| 2020 | 54.7% |
| 2021 | 71.4% |
| 2022 | 55.6% |
| 2023 | 59.4% |
2023: 59.4%. Across these years the share ran from 40.6% to 71.4%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
These are the 32 tests reported to CDC for Nemaha 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).
Nemaha County, Compared
Nemaha County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411More than half: 59.4% of the 32 radon tests reported to CDC for Nemaha County in 2023 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 20th of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 21.2 points above the 38.2% pooled from 86 Nebraska counties.
The median result, 5.7 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 30.5 pCi/L. The rest split 18.8% under 2 pCi/L and 21.9% from 2 to 4 (Nebraska: 39.2% and 22.6%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 59.4% share point the same way here.
All 2 of its bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Otoe County at 64.4%; the lowest of them, Richardson County, reported 61.8%. Statewide for the same period, Gage County reported the highest share (79.8%) and Dakota County the lowest (3.1%).
The busiest year on file was 2018, with 381 tests reported; the quietest, 2022, had 27.
Over 9 years of annual figures the share rose 18.8 points, from 40.6% in 2014 to 59.4% in 2023; its peak was 71.4% in 2021. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 33.4%; Nemaha County sits 26.0 points above it. CDC also counts 8 tests taken after mitigation in Nemaha County for the same period: tests in homes where a fix was already in.
Nemaha CountyNebraska, pooled
59.4% % of tests38.2% % of tests
| Year | Tests | Nemaha County, at or above 4 pCi/L | Nebraska, pooled |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 96 | 40.6% | 50.5% |
| 2015 | 174 | 62.1% | 53.3% |
| 2016 | 255 | 65.9% | 47.4% |
| 2017 | 252 | 61.9% | 47.7% |
| 2018 | 381 | 66.9% | 44.5% |
| 2019 | 216 | 58.3% | 44.3% |
| 2020 | 159 | 54.7% | 42.2% |
| 2021 | 105 | 71.4% | 34.9% |
| 2023 | 32 | 59.4% | 38.2% |
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Nemaha County, Geology
The ground under Nemaha County
PredictedUSGS's geologic map puts all of Nemaha 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.
Nemaha County beside the ground around it
Nemaha County has more high-potential ground than Nebraska as a whole: 100% of its land against 40.9%. Of the 6 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Johnson County comes nearest at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Nemaha County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Nemaha 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
Nemaha County, Questions
Questions about radon in Nemaha County
Are radon levels high in Nemaha County?
In 2023, 59.4% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Nemaha County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 5.7 pCi/L. Of 33 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 19 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 38.2%.
Which counties border Nemaha County?
Nemaha County borders 6 counties: Otoe County, NE, Richardson County, NE, Johnson County, NE, Atchison County, MO, Pawnee County, NE and Holt County, MO.
Products
Nemaha County, Products
Testing a home in Nemaha County
In Nemaha County, 59.4% of 32 tests reported to CDC in 2023 reached 4 pCi/L, against 38.2% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Nemaha 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
EcoBlu plug-in digital radon monitor with a display
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Plug-in
- Alarm
- Screen
Method: Ion chamber
First reading: Within 10 minutes
Short-term kit
RA400 short-term liquid scintillation radon test kit, lab fee included
- Lab fee included
Method: Liquid scintillation
In home: 48 to 96 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Nemaha County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Nemaha County
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Nemaha County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Nemaha County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Atchison County, MOEPA zone 1
100.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 14.7 pCi/L · 3 tests · 40.6 points above Nemaha County
- Radon levels in Holt County, MOEPA zone 1
100.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 8.2 pCi/L · 1 test · 40.6 points above Nemaha County
- Radon levels in Otoe County, NEEPA zone 1
64.4%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.7 pCi/L · 59 tests · 5.0 points above Nemaha County
- Radon levels in Richardson County, NEEPA zone 1
61.8%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.1 pCi/L · 34 tests · 2.4 points above Nemaha County
- Radon levels in Johnson County, NEEPA zone 1
61.1%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.7 pCi/L · 18 tests · 1.7 points above Nemaha County
- Radon levels in Pawnee County, NEEPA zone 1
50.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.1 pCi/L · 4 tests · 9.4 points below Nemaha County
Nemaha County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Nemaha County
Nemaha County's population has barely moved since 2020: 7,102 residents on July 1, 2025 against 7,086 then, by the Census Bureau's estimates. That works out to 17 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Auburn, has 3,498 residents, 49.3% of the total. Together its 7 incorporated places hold 69.2% of those residents; the other 30.8% live outside any of them. CDC's 32 reported tests for 2023 work out to 4.5 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Nebraska's 5.5.
From Auburn to Julian, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Nemaha County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auburn | 3,498 | +0.4% | 49.3% |
| Peru | 696 | +2.5% | 9.8% |
| Johnson | 305 | −0.3% | 4.3% |
| Brownville | 141 | Level | 2.0% |
| Brock | 120 | −1.6% | 1.7% |
| Nemaha | 112 | Level | 1.6% |
| Julian | 46 | Level | 0.6% |
7 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).
Nemaha County, Homes
Homes in Nemaha County
Nemaha County is a place of houses on their own lots: 78% of its 3,317 homes are detached single-family houses, against 72% across Nebraska. The homes are older than Nebraska's as a whole: half were built before 1955 (1975 for Nebraska), and 54% date from before 1960. 71% 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 | Nemaha County | Nebraska |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 3,317 | 855,631 |
| Detached houses | 78% | 72% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 8% | 17% |
| Mobile homes | 5% | 3% |
| Built before 1960 | 54% | 32% |
| Built since 2000 | 9% | 22% |
| Middle year built | 1955 | 1975 |
| Owner-occupied | 71% | 67% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.