Environmental Health
Certain environments can impact people’s health, and they may be unaware of the risks in their homes, workplaces, schools, or communities. This lack of awareness can be detrimental. The following environmental indicators aim to educate about potential risks, helping individuals become more informed and proactive.
Tickborne Disease Risk
Kittson, Marshall, Pennington, and Red Lake counties are high-risk areas for tickborne diseases like Lyme disease. Roseau County is medium risk. During tick season, tick repellents should be encouraged and regular tick checks to reduce infection risk should be performed. Awareness and proactive health practices are crucial. Early detection and prompt removal of ticks can lower disease transmission chances.
Arsenic
Arsenic can be found in drinking water. Testing is vital in learning if your water has arsenic. The MDH recommendation is to test a private well at least once for arsenic. Chronic arsenic exposure has shown to be a risk factor for some cancers and also can impact a child’s development. in both arsenic concentration categories (> 2 µg/L and > 10 µg/L), Pennington County was the only QUin county that had lower percentages of wells with arsenic compared to the state average for Minnesota.
| Location | Percentage of Wells > 2 µg/L | Percentage of Wells > 10 µg/L |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 48.6% (34,920 / 71,831) | 11.5% (8,264 / 71,831) |
| Kittson | 44.1% (15 / 34) | 14.7% (5 / 34) |
| Marshall | 43.4% (98 / 226) | 14.2% (32 / 226) |
| Pennington | 35.5% (102 / 287) | 11.1% (32 / 287) |
| Red Lake | 52.8% (67 / 127) | 14.2% (18 / 127) |
| Roseua | 55.8% (300 / 538) | 16.0% (86 / 538) |
Minnesota Department of Health (2008-2021)
Radon
Radon levels are measured in picocuries per liter (pCi/L), and there is no safe level of exposure. The EPA estimates that at 4 pCi/L, the lifetime risk of lung cancer death is 7 per 1,000 for never-smokers and 62 per 1,000 for current smokers. Testing is the only way to know if you have a radon problem. All five Quin counties had lower property radon testing rates than the state of Minnesota. However, Marshall, Pennington, and Red Lake counties had higher percentages of properties with radon concentrations above 2 pCi/L and 4 pCi/L compared to the state average.
| Location | Properties Tested per 10,000 Properties | % of Properties Tested with > 2 pCi/L | % of Properties Tested with > 4 pCi/L |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 93.5 | 71.2% | 40.3% |
| Kittson | 18.5 | 60.4% | 27.1%* |
| Marshall | 37.3 | 76.3% | 53.3% |
| Pennington | 27.5 | 80.0% | 58.8% |
| Red Lake | 32.4 | 72.0% | 42.0% |
| Roseua | 13.5 | 64.4% | 29.7% |
* Unstable Rate @mdhRadon
