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 Polk County, Nebraska
EPA puts Polk County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and only 18 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
69.1%
21.7 pts above NE
- Polk
- 69.1%
- Nebraska
- 47.4%
282 tests, 2016
Median result
6.2pCi/L
Action level reached
- Polk
- 6.2 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2016
Tests reported
282
29th of 71 by tests
- Polk
- 282
- Douglas
- 20,817
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2016
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
11 of 71
Top quarter
- Polk
- 69.1%
- Dixon
- 85.5%
By share, of 71 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Polk County
Starts at Polk County's median, 6.2 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 6.2 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. Polk County's median reported result, 2016.
The data
Polk County, At a glance
Polk County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Polk County in
USGS geologic potential: High across 74% of the county's area
Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones
Measured: tests reported to CDC
Radon tests reported for Polk County, 2023
| Year | Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 80.4% |
| 2015 | 66.7% |
| 2016 | 69.1% |
| 2017 | 62.5% |
| 2018 | 72.7% |
| 2019 | 57.6% |
| 2020 | 72.7% |
| 2021 | 73.7% |
| 2022 | 60.0% |
| 2023 | 94.4% |
2023: 94.4%. Across these years the share ran from 57.6% to 94.4%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.
What these figures count
Only 18 tests were reported to CDC for Polk 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).
Polk County, Compared
Polk County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411More than half: 69.1% of the 282 radon tests reported to CDC for Polk County in 2016 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 11th of 71 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 21.7 points above the 47.4% pooled from 89 Nebraska counties.
The newest figure, in 2023, counts only 18 tests (94.4% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 282-test figure.
The median result, 6.2 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 25.4 pCi/L. The rest split 11.7% under 2 pCi/L and 19.1% from 2 to 4 (Nebraska: 24.9% and 27.7%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 69.1% share point the same way here.
1 of its 6 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Hamilton County at 72.2%; Merrick County reported 21.1%. Statewide for the same period, Dixon County reported the highest share (85.5%) and Sheridan County the lowest (20.0%).
The busiest year on file was 2016, with 282 tests reported; the quietest, 2023, had 18.
Over 8 years of annual figures the share fell 6.7 points, from 80.4% in 2014 to 73.7% in 2021; its peak was 80.4% in 2014. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 31.2%; Polk County sits 37.9 points above it.
Polk CountyNebraska, pooled
73.7% % of tests34.9% % of tests
| Year | Tests | Polk County, at or above 4 pCi/L | Nebraska, pooled |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 138 | 80.4% | 50.5% |
| 2015 | 117 | 66.7% | 53.3% |
| 2016 | 282 | 69.1% | 47.4% |
| 2017 | 144 | 62.5% | 47.7% |
| 2018 | 165 | 72.7% | 44.5% |
| 2019 | 99 | 57.6% | 44.3% |
| 2020 | 99 | 72.7% | 42.2% |
| 2021 | 57 | 73.7% | 34.9% |
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Polk County, Geology
The ground under Polk County
PredictedUSGS's geologic map splits Polk County: 73.9% of its land is high radon potential and 26.1% moderate. The map puts 73.9% of Polk County in the area it calls Pre-Wisconsin glacial deposits and 26.1% in Loess over Tertiary sediments. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Wisconsin glacial deposits | Loess-mantled glacial drift. | High | 13 | 73.9% |
| Loess over Tertiary sediments | Tertiary bedrock covered by varying thicknesses of loess. | Moderate | 11 | 26.1% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Polk County beside the ground around it
Polk County has more high-potential ground than Nebraska as a whole: 73.9% of its land against 40.9%. Of the 6 counties that border it, 5 have more high-potential ground, Seward County the most at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Polk County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Polk County
Listed radon businesses with an address in Polk 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: Stromsburg
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
Polk County, Questions
Questions about radon in Polk County
Are radon levels high in Polk County?
In 2023, 94.4% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Polk County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 7.0 pCi/L. Of 71 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 10 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 47.4%.
Which counties border Polk County?
Polk County borders 6 counties: York County, Butler County, Merrick County, Platte County, Hamilton County and Seward County.
Products
Polk County, Products
Testing a home in Polk County
In Polk County, 69.1% of 282 tests reported to CDC in 2016 reached 4 pCi/L, against 47.4% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Polk 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
Wave Plus battery radon and air quality monitor
- C-NRPP 2024/25: Not included
- Battery
- Bluetooth
- App only
Method: Alpha spectrometry
Short-term kitempowerDX
Standard Radon Test short-term mail-in radon test kit
- Lab fee included
Method: Passive sampler
In home: 48 to 96 hours
- See every kit and monitor Test kits and monitors
Test kits and monitors: 1 of 3
Polk County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Polk County
Explore
Polk County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Polk County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Hamilton CountyEPA zone 1
72.2%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.1 pCi/L · 345 tests · 3.1 points above Polk County
- Radon levels in Butler CountyEPA zone 1
68.9%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.9 pCi/L · 270 tests · 0.2 points below Polk County
- Radon levels in York CountyEPA zone 1
68.7%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 6.8 pCi/L · 948 tests · 0.4 points below Polk County
- Radon levels in Seward CountyEPA zone 1
60.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.2 pCi/L · 675 tests · 9.1 points below Polk County
- Radon levels in Platte CountyEPA zone 1
47.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.7 pCi/L · 951 tests · 22.1 points below Polk County
- Radon levels in Merrick CountyEPA zone 2
21.1%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 2.3 pCi/L · 114 tests · 48.0 points below Polk County
Polk County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Polk County
The Census Bureau estimates 5,270 residents in Polk County for July 1, 2025, 56 more than in 2020 (+1.1%). That works out to 12 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Stromsburg, has 1,159 residents, 22.0% of the total. Together its 4 incorporated places hold 59.2% of those residents; the other 40.8% live outside any of them. Testing is reported here more often than across the state: CDC's 282 reported tests for 2016 come to 53.5 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), against 33.4 for Nebraska.
From Stromsburg to Polk, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Polk County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stromsburg | 1,159 | +1.3% | 22.0% |
| Osceola | 883 | +1.3% | 16.8% |
| Shelby | 739 | +2.9% | 14.0% |
| Polk | 341 | −1.4% | 6.5% |
4 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).
Polk County, Homes
Homes in Polk County
Polk County is a place of houses on their own lots: 89% of its 2,524 homes are detached single-family houses, against 72% across Nebraska. The homes are older than Nebraska's as a whole: half were built before 1963 (1975 for Nebraska), and 46% date from before 1960. Owners live in 82% of the occupied homes (Nebraska: 67%), so for most households a test and a fix are their own to order.
| Homes | Polk County | Nebraska |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 2,524 | 855,631 |
| Detached houses | 89% | 72% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 3% | 17% |
| Mobile homes | 6% | 3% |
| Built before 1960 | 46% | 32% |
| Built since 2000 | 10% | 22% |
| Middle year built | 1963 | 1975 |
| Owner-occupied | 82% | 67% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.