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The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, is sponsoring a Radon Poster Contest for children ages 9-14 enrolled in a public, private, territorial, tribal, Department of Defense or home school. Members of a sponsoring club, such as a scouting organization or art, computer, science or 4-H club, also are eligible. There is no entry fee, and only one entry per student is allowed. The entry deadline is Oct. 31.
Poster topics must include one of the following subjects:

• What is radon?
• Where does radon come from?
• How does radon get into our homes?
• Radon can cause lung cancer.
• Test your home for radon.

The Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment will judge Colorado entries on content accuracy, visual communication of the topic, reproducibility and originality. Colorado winners and runners-up will be entered in the national contest.

The winning national poster will be unveiled at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., in January 2011. The national winner, a parent and a teacher or sponsoring organization’s representative will win an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., to participate in the ceremony. The winning poster will be reproduced and distributed nationally to promote radon awareness.

“Radon awareness is especially important in Colorado,” said Steve Tarlton, radiation program manager for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. “Fifty-two of our state’s 64 counties are at high risk for radon exposure indoors. Radon is a colorless, odorless, tasteless radioactive gas that is a leading cause of lung cancer.”

More information about contest entries, including specific artwork requirements, can be found at www.coloradoradon.info