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 Sargent County, North Dakota
EPA puts Sargent County in Zone 1, its highest radon zone, and only 24 radon tests from it are on file with CDC (2008 to 2017, laboratory totals). Homes with elevated levels occur in all three zones, so only a test measures yours.
Data checked By Radon411Methodology
Share at 4+ pCi/L
58.5%
4.5 pts above ND
- Sargent
- 58.5%
- ND
- 54.0%
41 tests, 2005 to 2014
Median result
4.3pCi/L
Action level reached
- Sargent
- 4.3 pCi/L
- EPA
- 4.0 pCi/L
Midpoint of the tests, 2005 to 2014
Tests reported
41
29th of 39 by tests
- Sargent
- 41
- Burleigh
- 1,312
Reported to CDC before any fix, 2005 to 2014
EPA radon zone
Zone 1
Highest potential
- Zone 1
- 2
- 3
1 highest, 3 lowest
EPA predicts over 4 pCi/L indoors
Rank in ND
22 of 39
Middle half
- Sargent
- 58.5%
- Billings
- 90.9%
By share, of 39 with 30+ tests
Read a result for Sargent County
Starts at Sargent County's median, 4.3 pCi/L
EPA’s own thresholds; the figures are the area’s, never this home’s.
EPA’s reading of 4.3 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. Sargent County's median reported result, 2005 to 2014.
The data
Sargent County, At a glance
Sargent County at a glance
Predicted: EPA radon zone
EPA Zone 1: highest predicted potential
EPA puts all of Sargent 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 Sargent County, 2008 to 2017, laboratory
CDC holds 24 reported tests for Sargent County over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, with a median of 7.2 pCi/L: too few to describe a county (Radon411 reads a share from 30 tests up). Sargent County beside the counties around it is how this page reads it.
What these figures count
Only 24 tests were reported to CDC for Sargent County over 2008 to 2017 (laboratory totals), 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: 2008 to 2017, laboratory. Measured data period: 2005 to 2017 (every CDC figure on file).
Sargent County, Compared
Sargent County radon figures, compared
Calculated by Radon411More than half: 58.5% of the 41 radon tests reported to CDC for Sargent County over the 2005 to 2014 laboratory totals read at least 4 pCi/L. That places it 22nd of 39 North Dakota counties with 30 or more tests for the same period. That is 4.5 points above the 54.0% pooled from 53 North Dakota counties.
The newest figure, over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, counts only 24 tests (75.0% at or above 4 pCi/L), too few to compare, so this reading uses the 41-test figure.
The median result, 4.3 pCi/L, sits above EPA's 4 pCi/L action level, and the top reported result was 21.5 pCi/L. The rest split 31.7% under 2 pCi/L and 9.8% from 2 to 4 (North Dakota: 22.0% and 23.9%). Zone 1 on EPA's map (predicted average above 4 pCi/L) and a 58.5% share point the same way here.
1 of its 4 bordering counties with figures ran higher, led by Ransom County at 59.6%; Richland County reported 37.2%. Statewide for the same period, Billings County reported the highest share (90.9%) and Williams County the lowest (35.1%).
CDC's ten-year totals for Sargent County went from 41 tests (2005 to 2014) to 24 (2008 to 2017), the share going from 58.5% to 75.0%.
Nationally, every county with a figure for the same period pools to 36.0%; Sargent County sits 22.5 points above it.
Pooled shares: Radon411's sum of CDC's county counts for one period.
Sargent County, Geology
The ground under Sargent County
PredictedUSGS's geologic map puts all of Sargent County's mapped land in one class: high radon potential. The map puts 79.1% of Sargent County in the area it calls Great Plains (Glaciated) and 11.0% in Glacial Lakes, with one smaller area beside them. USGS gives the first a radon index of 13 and the second 14, both in the high band (12 to 17).
| Area | The rock, in USGS's words | Potential | Radon index | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Plains (Glaciated) | Glacial deposits derived from Cretaceous shales containing higher than average amounts of uranium. | High | 13 | 79.1% |
| Glacial Lakes | Silt and clay deposits of Glacial Lake Agassiz derived from Cretaceous shales containing higher than average amounts of uranium. | High | 14 | 11.0% |
| Glacial Lakes | Silt and clay glacial lake deposits derived from Cretaceous shales containing higher than average amounts of uranium. | High | 14 | 9.8% |
Names, descriptions and indexes: U.S. Geological Survey, Geologic Radon Potential Map (2025). Shares: Radon411, from the map cut to the boundary.
Sargent County beside the ground around it
On high-potential ground Sargent County is close to North Dakota as a whole: 100% of its land against 98.9%. Of the 6 counties that border it, none has as large a share of high-potential ground; Dickey County comes nearest at 100%.
The map rates the ground, not the air in any home.
Local help
Sargent County, Local resources
Radon testing and mitigation in Sargent County
- North Dakota's radon programNorth Dakota Department of Environmental QualityNorth Dakota's radon program offers free or discounted test kits, and answers questions about testing and mitigation in North Dakota.Visit the program’s page(opens in a new tab)
- Free and low-cost kitsThe program says:
Notice: The DEQ is out of free radon test kits.
- Compare kits
- Professionals in North Dakota47 professionals are listed in North Dakota.
What North Dakota's program says
- Phone
- 701-328-5166
- jOtto@nd.gov
What it means
Sargent County, Questions
Questions about radon in Sargent County
Are radon levels high in Sargent County?
Over the 2008 to 2017 laboratory totals, 75.0% of the radon tests reported to CDC for Sargent County, North Dakota were at or above 4 pCi/L, and the median reported pre-mitigation result was 7.2 pCi/L. Of 39 North Dakota counties with 30 or more tests for the same period, 21 reported a higher share; pooled, the state comes to 54.0%.
Which counties border Sargent County?
Sargent County borders 6 counties: Ransom County, ND, Marshall County, SD, Richland County, ND, Dickey County, ND, Roberts County, SD and Brown County, SD.
Products
Sargent County, Products
Testing a home in Sargent County
In Sargent County, 58.5% of 41 tests reported to CDC over the 2005 to 2014 laboratory totals reached 4 pCi/L, against 54.0% pooled across North Dakota. In Zone 1 the year-round level in Sargent 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
Sargent County is in EPA Zone 1, the highest predicted radon potential. Best radon monitors for Zone 1 counties like Sargent County
Explore
Sargent County, Bordering counties
Counties bordering Sargent County
Calculated by Radon411- Radon levels in Marshall County, SDEPA zone 1
85.7%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 10.8 pCi/L · 14 tests · 27.2 points above Sargent County
- Radon levels in Ransom County, NDEPA zone 1
59.6%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 5.0 pCi/L · 178 tests · 1.1 points above Sargent County
- Radon levels in Brown County, SDEPA zone 1
56.5%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 4.3 pCi/L · 46 tests · 2.0 points below Sargent County
- Radon levels in Dickey County, NDEPA zone 1
46.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.7 pCi/L · 50 tests · 12.5 points below Sargent County
- Radon levels in Roberts County, SDEPA zone 1
45.0%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.5 pCi/L · 20 tests · 13.5 points below Sargent County
- Radon levels in Richland County, NDEPA zone 1
37.2%at or above 4 pCi/L
Median 3.0 pCi/L · 137 tests · 21.3 points below Sargent County
Sargent County, Cities and towns
Cities and towns in Sargent County
About 3,711 people live in Sargent County by the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025, 129 fewer than in 2020 (−3.4%). Spread over its land, that is 4.3 people to the square mile. Its largest town, Gwinner, has 894 residents, 24.1% of the total. Together its 7 incorporated places hold 62.4% of those residents; the other 37.6% live outside any of them. CDC's 41 reported tests for 2005 to 2014 work out to 11.0 per 1,000 residents (2025 estimate), close to North Dakota's 8.2.
From Gwinner to Cayuga, CDC publishes no figure by town: each reads Sargent County's.
| Place | Residents | Since 2020 | Share of residents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gwinner | 894 | −3.6% | 24.1% |
| Milnor | 606 | −2.3% | 16.3% |
| Forman | 489 | −3.7% | 13.2% |
| Rutland | 156 | −4.3% | 4.2% |
| Cogswell | 69 | −1.4% | 1.9% |
| Havana | 64 | −1.5% | 1.7% |
| Cayuga | 39 | −4.9% | 1.1% |
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).
Sargent County, Homes
Homes in Sargent County
Sargent County is a place of houses on their own lots: 76% of its 1,997 homes are detached single-family houses, against 57% across North Dakota. The homes are older than North Dakota's as a whole: half were built before 1972 (1981 for North Dakota), and 37% date from before 1960. 74% of occupied homes are lived in by their owner (North Dakota: 63%); in the rest a tenant can run a test, but a fix is the landlord's to make.
| Homes | Sargent County | North Dakota |
|---|---|---|
| Housing units | 1,997 | 374,866 |
| Detached houses | 76% | 57% |
| In buildings of 5 or more | 10% | 25% |
| Mobile homes | 9% | 7% |
| Built before 1960 | 37% | 24% |
| Built since 2000 | 18% | 31% |
| Middle year built | 1972 | 1981 |
| Owner-occupied | 74% | 63% |
Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2019 to 2023: estimates from a sample of homes, looser for a small place. Shares by Radon411.