Is Orleans Parish, LA a radon risk area?

EPA places Orleans Parish in Zone 3 - Low Potential — a predicted county-wide average indoor radon level below 2 pCi/L, based on the geology, soil and aerial radioactivity data behind EPA's national map. That puts Orleans Parish in the 31st percentile nationally for radon potential — higher than 31% of the counties EPA has rated.

Where Orleans Parish sits nationally

About 362,701 people live in Orleans Parish, Louisiana, spread over 169.578 square miles. Averaged across its land area, Orleans Parish runs about 2,139 people per square mile. Rank 74 by population within its EPA zone puts Orleans Parish at the 93rd percentile among zone peers. Orleans Parish falls in EPA Radon Region 6, one of 503 counties nationally EPA assigns to that same geologic province.

Why the zone isn't the answer by itself

Orleans Parish's Zone 3 prediction undercuts the roughly 1.3 pCi/L most US homes average, nowhere near EPA's 4 pCi/L threshold for recommending mitigation. Low doesn't mean zero: EPA's own data shows homes in Zone 3 counties like Orleans Parish testing above the action level often enough that skipping a test isn't the safe assumption.

If Orleans Parish tests above the action level

Nothing about Orleans Parish's EPA zone changes the mitigation number: $800–$2,500 nationally (around $1,200 typical), set by the house's foundation rather than the county it sits in — and only relevant once a test actually clears 4 pCi/L.

Find Louisiana's state radon program

Orleans Parish's test kit answers today; a Airthings radon monitor keeps answering for Orleans Parish over time. Affiliate link, RadonZoneCheck earns a commission there, at no extra cost to you. RADONZONE-10OFF at checkout knocks 10% off.

More on how this number was built

Every figure on this page traces to EPA's own Map of Radon Zones and Census data, documented in the methodology guide. If you're unsure why a low zone still deserves a test, the zone explainer covers that directly.