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Radon Levels in Thurston County, Nebraska

EPA puts Thurston County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and only 8 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

How to test this homeFind a certified tester

  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    55.6%

    8.2 pts above NE

    Thurston
    55.6%
    Nebraska
    47.4%

    162 tests, 2016

  • Median result

    5.3pCi/L

    Action level reached

    Thurston
    5.3 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2016

  • Tests reported

    162

    43rd of 71 by tests

    Thurston
    162
    Douglas
    20,817

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2016

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 1

    Highest potential

    1. Zone 1
    2. 2
    3. 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in Nebraska

    35 of 71

    Middle half

    Thurston
    55.6%
    Dixon
    85.5%

    By share, of 71 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Thurston County

Starts at Thurston County's median, 5.3 pCi/L

5.3pCi/L

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

EPA’s reading of 5.3 pCi/L

At or above 4 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 at or above 4 pCi/L. EPA recommends fixing a home when the radon level is 4 pCi/L or higher. Thurston County's median reported result, 2016.

Interpret this readingWhat a fix costs

The data

Thurston County, At a glance

Thurston County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential

EPA puts all of Thurston County in and predicts an average indoor of greater than 4 pCi/L (greater than 150 Bq/m³) across the county. That is one forecast for the whole county, not a reading of any address in it; homes above EPA's turn up in all three zones.

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 Thurston County, 2023

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Thurston County
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Thurston County
YearShare of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L
201478.9%
201580.0%
201655.6%
201766.7%
201872.5%
201970.0%
202057.1%
202133.3%
202253.3%
202350.0%

2023: 50.0%. Across these years the share ran from 33.3% to 80.0%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.

What these figures count

Only 8 tests were reported to CDC for Thurston 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).

How to read these figures

Thurston County, Compared

Thurston County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

More than half: 55.6% of the 162 radon tests reported to CDC for Thurston County in 2016 read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 35th of 71 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 8.2 points above the 47.4% pooled from 89 Nebraska counties.

The newest figure, in 2023, counts only 8 tests (50.0% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 162-test figure.

The median result, 5.3 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 47.0 pCi/L. The rest split 33.3% under 2 pCi/L and 11.1% from 2 to 4 (Nebraska: 24.9% and 27.7%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 55.6% share point the same way here.

4 of its 5 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Dixon County at 85.5%; Cuming County reported 51.7%. 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 162 tests reported; the quietest, 2023, had 8.

Over 7 years of annual figures the share fell 21.8 points, from 78.9% in 2014 to 57.1% in 2020; its peak was 80.0% in 2015. Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 31.2%; Thurston County sits 24.4 points above it.

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Thurston County against Nebraska2014 to 2020, years with 30 or more tests: Thurston County 78.9% to 57.1%, the state's pooled share 42.2% in 2020.
Thurston CountyNebraska, pooled
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L by year, Thurston County against Nebraska: data table
YearTestsThurston County, at or above 4 pCi/LNebraska, pooled
201411478.9%50.5%
201513580.0%53.3%
201616255.6%47.4%
20174566.7%47.7%
201812072.5%44.5%
201912070.0%44.3%
20206357.1%42.2%
Thurston County against Nebraska, the United States and nearby counties, 2016
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Thurston County
Thurston County16255.6%5.3 pCi/LThis county
Nebraska, pooled89 counties, pooled67,49147.4%Not pooled−8.2 points
United States, pooled886 counties, pooled398,20731.2%Not pooled−24.4 points
Clay Countyhighest in the state14779.6%7.9 pCi/L+24.0 points
Sheridan Countylowest in the state4520.0%2.3 pCi/L−35.6 points
Dixon County, NEborders it20785.5%7.1 pCi/L+29.9 points
Burt County, NEborders it41473.2%6.8 pCi/L+17.6 points
Wayne County, NEborders it39066.9%6.7 pCi/L+11.3 points
Dakota County, NEborders it43266.7%5.2 pCi/L+11.1 points
Cuming County, NEborders it26151.7%4.2 pCi/L−3.9 points
Where Thurston County's reported results fell, 2016, beside Nebraska and the United States
ResultThurston County testsThurston County shareNebraska shareU.S. shareAgainst Nebraska
Under 2 pCi/L5433.3%24.9%44.8%+8.4 points
2 to 4 pCi/L1811.1%27.7%24.0%−16.6 points
4 pCi/L and above9055.6%47.4%31.2%+8.2 points
Thurston County ranked among the 71 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2016
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Antelope County30 of 719358.1%4.7 pCi/L
Otoe County31 of 7155557.3%5.1 pCi/L
Johnson County32 of 719056.7%5.0 pCi/L
Red Willow County33 of 7132456.5%4.2 pCi/L
Nance County34 of 7111756.4%4.6 pCi/L
Thurston County35 of 7116255.6%5.3 pCi/L
Colfax County36 of 7122855.3%4.6 pCi/L
Valley County37 of 718755.2%4.5 pCi/L
Hitchcock County38 of 713354.5%4.2 pCi/L
Adams County39 of 711,07754.3%4.3 pCi/L
Scotts Bluff County40 of 7159153.8%4.2 pCi/L
Thurston County radon tests by year, against Nebraska's pooled share
YearTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestNebraska, pooledChange from the row before
2023850.0%4.0 pCi/L21.5 pCi/L38.2%−3.3 points
20221553.3%5.3 pCi/L12.7 pCi/L34.0%+20.0 points
20211833.3%1.9 pCi/L27.3 pCi/L34.9%−23.8 points
20206357.1%6.7 pCi/L30.9 pCi/L42.2%−12.9 points
201912070.0%7.3 pCi/L27.4 pCi/L44.3%−2.5 points
201812072.5%8.1 pCi/L32.9 pCi/L44.5%+5.8 points
20174566.7%6.8 pCi/L12.8 pCi/L47.7%+11.1 points
201616255.6%5.3 pCi/L47.0 pCi/L47.4%−24.4 points
201513580.0%9.2 pCi/L24.3 pCi/L53.3%+1.1 points
201411478.9%6.2 pCi/L22.6 pCi/L50.5%First on file

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

Thurston County, Geology

The ground under Thurston County

Predicted

USGS's geologic map puts all of Thurston 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).

USGS's geologic areas under Thurston County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Pre-Wisconsin glacial depositsLoess-mantled glacial drift.High1399.9%

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

Thurston County beside the ground around it

Thurston County has more high-potential ground than Nebraska as a whole: 100% of its land against 40.9%. Of the 7 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Cuming County comes nearest at 100%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Thurston County, the 7 counties bordering it and Nebraska
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Thurston CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Dakota CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Cuming CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Burt CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Dixon CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Wayne CountyZone 1NoneNone100%
Woodbury County, IAZone 1NoneNone100%
Monona County, IAZone 1NoneNone100%
Nebraska93 counties, pooled by land areaVaries28.2%30.9%40.9%

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

Local help

Thurston County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Thurston County

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

Thurston County, Questions

Questions about radon in Thurston County

Are radon levels high in Thurston County?

In 2023, 50.0% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Thurston County, Nebraska were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 4.0 pCi/L. Of 71 Nebraska counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 34 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 47.4%.

Which counties border Thurston County?

Thurston County borders 7 counties: Dakota County, NE, Cuming County, NE, Burt County, NE, Dixon County, NE, Wayne County, NE, Woodbury County, IA and Monona County, IA.

Products

Thurston County, Products

Testing a home in Thurston County

In Thurston County, 55.6% of 162 tests reported to CDC in 2016 reached 4 pCi/L, against 47.4% pooled across Nebraska. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Thurston 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

Thurston County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Thurston County

Explore

Thurston County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Thurston County

Calculated by Radon411

Thurston County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Thurston County

Thurston County's population has barely moved since 2020: 6,752 residents on July 1, 2025 against 6,759 then, by the Census Bureau's estimates. That works out to 17 people per square mile of land. No town dominates: Pender, the largest, has 1,106 residents, 16.4% of the total. CDC's 162 reported tests for 2016 work out to 24.0 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to Nebraska's 33.4.

From Pender to Thurston, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Thurston County's.

The cities and towns in Thurston County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Pender1,106−2.0%16.4%
Winnebago909−0.5%13.5%
Emersonextends beyond Thurston County825−0.6%Counted whole
Walthill713+1.6%10.6%
Rosalie156Level2.3%
Thurston118+0.9%1.7%

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 Thurston County is counted whole, so it has no share.

Thurston County, Homes

Homes in Thurston County

Thurston County is a place of houses on their own lots: 80% of its 2,290 homes are detached single-family houses, against 72% across Nebraska. Half of its homes were built before 1971, close to Nebraska's 1975: 38% date from before 1960 and 15% from 2000 or later. 61% 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 in Thurston County, Nebraska, 2019 to 2023
HomesThurston CountyNebraska
Housing units2,290855,631
Detached houses80%72%
In buildings of 5 or more8%17%
Mobile homes4%3%
Built before 196038%32%
Built since 200015%22%
Middle year built19711975
Owner-occupied61%67%

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