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Radon Levels in Wayne County, North Carolina

EPA puts Wayne County in Zone 3, its lowest radon zone, and most reported tests there come back low, though 1.5% of 67 (2022) reached 4 pCi/L. Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.

Data checked By Radon411Methodology

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  • Share at 4+ pCi/L

    1.5%

    9.2 pts below NC

    Wayne
    1.5%
    NC
    10.7%

    67 tests, 2022

  • Median result

    1.0pCi/L

    Below action level

    Wayne
    1.0 pCi/L
    EPA
    4.0 pCi/L

    Midpoint of the tests, 2022

  • Tests reported

    67

    3rd of 4 by tests

    Wayne
    67
    Pitt
    116

    Reported to CDC before any fix, 2022

  • EPA radon zone

    Zone 3

    Lower potential

    1. 1
    2. 2
    3. Zone 3

    1 highest, 3 lowest

    EPA predicts under 2 pCi/L indoors

  • Rank in NC

    3 of 4

    Middle half

    Wayne
    1.5%
    Buncombe
    38.0%

    By share, of 4 with 30+ tests

Read a result for Wayne County

Starts at Wayne County's median, 1.0 pCi/L

1.0pCi/L

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

EPA’s reading of 1.0 pCi/L

Below 2 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 below 2 pCi/L, the level at which EPA says a fix should be considered. Wayne County's median reported result, 2022.

Interpret this reading

The data

Wayne County, At a glance

Wayne County at a glance

Predicted: EPA radon zone

EPA Zone 3: lower predicted potential

is EPA's lowest class, and its forecast for Wayne County as a whole is an average indoor of less than 2 pCi/L (less than 75 Bq/m³). A low zone clears no address in it: homes above EPA's turn up in all three zones.

USGS geologic potential: Low across 100% of the county's area

Predicted: EPA Map of Radon Zones

Measured: tests reported to CDC

Radon tests reported for Wayne County, 2022

Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Wayne County
Share of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L, by year, Wayne County
YearShare of reported tests at or above 4 pCi/L
20140.0%
20200.0%
20210.0%
20221.5%

2022: 1.5%. Across these years the share ran from 0.0% to 1.5%. Each column counts radon tests reported to CDC that year, not homes.

What these figures count

These are the 67 tests reported to CDC for Wayne County over 2022, 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: 2022. Measured data period: 2005 to 2022 (every CDC figure on file).

How to read these figures

Wayne County, Compared

Wayne County radon figures, compared

Calculated by Radon411

Only 1 of 67 radon tests reported for Wayne County in 2022 reached 4 pCi/L (1.5%). The median result, 1.0 pCi/L, sits below 2, well under EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 4.0 pCi/L.

Across 57 North Carolina counties pooled together, 10.7% of tests reached that level, so Wayne County runs 9.2 points below its state. Against the national pool of 23.9%, the gap is 22.4 points lower. Its place in the state: 3rd of 4 North Carolina counties with 30 or more tests for the same period.

Zone 3 on EPA's map (predicted average under 2 pCi/L) and a 1.5% share point the same way here.

Below the action level, 56 tests (83.6%) came in under 2 pCi/L, against 70.8% statewide, and 10 tests (14.9%) fell between 2 and 4, against 18.5% statewide. USGS geology rates 100% of the county's land low radon potential.

The busiest year on file was 2022, with 67 tests reported; the quietest, 2020, had 7.

Wayne County against North Carolina, the United States and nearby counties, 2022
AreaTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianDifference from Wayne County
Wayne County671.5%1.0 pCi/LThis county
North Carolina, pooled57 counties, pooled59010.7%Not pooled+9.2 points
United States, pooled853 counties, pooled333,14023.9%Not pooled+22.4 points
Buncombe Countyhighest in the state5038.0%2.5 pCi/L+36.5 points
Pitt Countylowest in the state1160.9%1.0 pCi/L−0.6 points
Johnston County, NCborders it30.0%0.1 pCi/L−1.5 points
Where Wayne County's reported results fell, 2022, beside North Carolina and the United States
ResultWayne County testsWayne County shareNorth Carolina shareU.S. shareAgainst North Carolina
Under 2 pCi/L5683.6%70.8%54.5%+12.8 points
2 to 4 pCi/L1014.9%18.5%21.7%−3.6 points
4 pCi/L and above11.5%10.7%23.9%−9.2 points
Wayne County ranked among the 4 North Carolina counties with 30 or more tests, by share at or above 4 pCi/L, 2022
CountyRankTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedian
Buncombe County1 of 45038.0%2.5 pCi/L
Wake County2 of 4882.3%0.1 pCi/L
Wayne County3 of 4671.5%1.0 pCi/L
Pitt County4 of 41160.9%1.0 pCi/L
Wayne County radon tests by year, against North Carolina's pooled share
YearTestsAt or above 4 pCi/LMedianHighestNorth Carolina, pooledChange from the row before
2022671.5%1.0 pCi/L4.0 pCi/L10.7%+1.5 points
202180.0%1.0 pCi/L1.0 pCi/L14.9%Level
202070.0%0.4 pCi/L2.0 pCi/L21.1%Level
2014150.0%0.1 pCi/L1.0 pCi/L21.9%First on file

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

Wayne County, Geology

The ground under Wayne County

Predicted

USGS's geologic map puts all of Wayne County's mapped land in one class: low radon potential. 96.1% of it lies in the area the map calls Inner Coastal Plain, to which USGS gives a radon index of 8, in the low band (5 to 8).

USGS's geologic areas under Wayne County
AreaThe rock, in USGS's wordsPotentialRadon indexShare of land
Inner Coastal PlainFossiliferous clay and sand, shelly sand, sandy marl, and limestone.Low896.1%
Eastern Slate BeltProterozoic to Cambrian metamudstone and argillite, interbedded with metamorphosed sandstone, conglomerate, and volcanic rock.Low83.9%

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

Wayne County beside the ground around it

Across North Carolina 1.3% of the land is rated high; none of Wayne County's is. Of the 6 counties that border it, 1 has more moderate-potential ground, Johnston County the most at 30.9%.

Share of land by USGS radon potential: Wayne County, the 6 counties bordering it and North Carolina
AreaEPA zoneLow potentialModerate potentialHigh potential
Wayne CountyZone 3100%NoneNone
Greene CountyZone 3100%NoneNone
Lenoir CountyZone 3100%NoneNone
Wilson CountyZone 3100%NoneNone
Johnston CountyZone 369.1%30.9%None
Duplin CountyZone 3100%NoneNone
Sampson CountyZone 3100%NoneNone
North Carolina100 counties, pooled by land areaVaries64.8%33.0%1.3%

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

Local help

Wayne County, Local resources

Radon testing and mitigation in Wayne County

What North Carolina's program says
Licensing of radon professionals
The North Carolina Radon Program is presently developing a Radon Proficiency Program as directed by Session Law 2023-91 House Bill 782 .

What it means

Wayne County, Questions

Questions about radon in Wayne County

Are radon levels high in Wayne County?

In 2022, 1.5% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Wayne County, North Carolina were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 1.0 pCi/L. Of 4 North Carolina counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 2 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 10.7%.

Which counties border Wayne County?

Wayne County borders 6 counties: Greene County, Lenoir County, Wilson County, Johnston County, Duplin County and Sampson County.

Products

Wayne County, Products

Testing a home in Wayne County

In Wayne County, 1.5% of 67 tests reported to CDC in 2022 reached 4 pCi/L, against 10.7% pooled across North Carolina. Zone 3 is the lowest label, yet homes at or above 4 pCi/L occur in every zone: a short-term kit (2 to 90 days) is the quick first check in Wayne County.

Test kits and monitors3

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Best radon monitors for Wayne County homes, compared

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Wayne County, Bordering counties

Counties bordering Wayne County

Calculated by Radon411

Wayne County, Cities and towns

Cities and towns in Wayne County

The Census Bureau estimates 122,278 residents in Wayne County for July 1, 2025, 4,520 more than in 2020 (+3.8%). That works out to 221 people per square mile of land. Its largest town, Goldsboro, has 35,012 residents, 28.6% of the total. Testing is reported here more often than across the state: CDC's 67 reported tests for 2022 come to 0.5 for every 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), against 0.1 for North Carolina.

From Goldsboro to Eureka, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Wayne County's.

The 6 largest cities and towns in Wayne County by residents, July 1, 2025
PlaceResidentsSince 2020Share of residents
Goldsboro35,012+1.6%28.6%
Mount Oliveextends beyond Wayne County4,521+2.9%Counted whole
Fremont1,237+3.3%1.0%
Walnut Creek1,119+3.7%0.9%
Pikeville738+4.4%0.6%
Seven Springs59+3.5%Under 0.1%
  • Eureka

7 incorporated places, as listed in the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 place reference files. “(part)” marks a place that extends into another county. Residents: U.S. Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025). A place that extends beyond Wayne County is counted whole, so it has no share.

Wayne County, Homes

Homes in Wayne County

Of Wayne County's 53,134 homes, 60% are detached houses, against 65% across North Carolina; 24% are mobile homes. Half of its homes were built before 1983, close to North Carolina's 1990: 17% date from before 1960 and 22% from 2000 or later. 62% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (North Carolina: 66%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.

Homes in Wayne County, North Carolina, 2019 to 2023
HomesWayne CountyNorth Carolina
Housing units53,1344,815,195
Detached houses60%65%
In buildings of 5 or more8%14%
Mobile homes24%11%
Built before 196017%14%
Built since 200022%33%
Middle year built19831990
Owner-occupied62%66%

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