Ministry of the Interior introduces Action Plan for Radon until 2030 worth 775,495 euros

The Ministry of the Interior has adopted the Radon Action Plan for the period up to 2030, published in the Official Gazette (Narodne novine) no. 115/2026 of October 9, 2026, under official mark no. 1374. The total value of the plan is 775,495.00 EUR, and it regulates the measurement and remediation of radon in residential buildings, public buildings, and at workplaces. The document was signed by Minister dr. sc. Davor Božinović, and the implementing body is the MUP – Directorate for Civil Protection.

The plan is adopted based on Article 65a, paragraph 1 of the Radiological and Nuclear Safety Act (»Official Gazette«, no. 141/13, 39/15, 130/17, 118/18, 21/22, and 114/22), which transposes Council Directive 2013/59/Euratom of December 5, 2013, into Croatian legislation. It replaces the previous Radon Action Plan for the period 2019 – 2024, and the new plan will be revised every five years. Prior to its adoption, opinions were obtained from the ministries responsible for health, construction and spatial planning, energy, environmental protection, and science and education.

The World Health Organization recognizes radon as the second leading cause of lung cancer for smokers and the primary cause for non-smokers. An increase in radon concentration by 100 Bq/m³ is associated with approximately a 16% higher risk of lung cancer, and it is estimated that radon is responsible for 3 to 14% of all cases of this disease. The reference level above which exposure is not considered acceptable is 300 Bq/m³.

Previous measurements showed concentrations up to 1600 Bq/m³

The first national study was conducted in the period 2003 – 2005 and covered residential buildings with concentrations from 4 to 751 Bq/m³, with an estimate that the reference level could be exceeded in about 3% of residential buildings. From 2012 to 2019, measurements were expanded to schools and kindergartens in nine counties and to the Baranja region:

• Brod-Posavina, Virovitica-Podravina, Lika-Senj, Karlovac, Istria, Primorje-Gorski Kotar, Požega-Slavonia, Sisak-Moslavina, and Vukovar-Srijem counties.

The measured range of concentrations in indoor spaces ranged from 10 to 1600 Bq/m³, identifying dozens of kindergartens and schools, as well as several hundred family houses with average values above the reference level. At least three counties were recognized as potential radon priority areas. The measurements covered 1,400 residential buildings, 727 schools, and 228 kindergartens, using approximately 6,000 LR-115 type II detectors, and were conducted by the Department of Physics of the Josip Juraj Strossmayer University in Osijek.

Seven goals and concrete measures until 2030

The plan defines seven goals: improvement of the legislative framework, linking with other national plans, involvement of the construction sector, identification of radon priority areas, reduction of exposure in public buildings, control of exposure at workplaces, and control of population exposure. Key measures include:

• development of a system for identifying radon priority areas, 30,000.00 EUR, during 2026;
• repeated measurements in schools and kindergartens at at least 20 locations, 100,000.00 EUR, from 2026 to 2030;
• reduction of elevated concentrations in at least 20 schools and kindergartens and the remediation of at least 5 facilities with concentrations above 1000 Bq/m³;
• radon measurement at specific workplaces, such as caves and spas, in the period from the first quarter of 2026 to the first quarter of 2030;
• development of publicly available instructions and guidelines for prevention and remediation, 15,000.00 EUR each;
• education of stakeholders involved in remediation, 10,500.00 EUR, co-financed by funds from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Funding from the State Budget and Obligations of Owners

The total implementation cost is 775,495.00 EUR, of which 764,995.00 EUR is provided from the state budget from budget item A879008 (Civil Protection System), while the remaining 10,500.00 EUR comes from the IAEA technical cooperation program through project CRO9016. The annual planned expenditure is 179,999.00 EUR in the first year, 149,999.00 EUR each in the second, third, and fifth years, and 134,999.00 EUR in the fourth year.

Owners and founders of public-use buildings and employers are obliged to act in accordance with Article 39 of the Regulations on Monitoring Radioactivity in the Environment (“Narodne novine”, No. 40/18 and 6/22), and they shall finance additional measurements, remediation, and certificates of successful remediation from their own funds. For owners of residential buildings, the costs of further measurements and remediation are not an obligation. Any natural or legal person may at any time order radon measurement from authorized professional technical services, the list of which is published on the website of the Directorate of Civil Protection. For the purpose of implementation, the Working Group for the Implementation of the Radon Action Plan is established, which meets at least once a year.

What this means for building owners, employers, and local authorities

The plan directly obliges owners and founders of schools, kindergartens, and other public-use buildings, as well as employers in radon priority areas, including caves and spas, to check and, if necessary, remediate their facilities. Local and regional self-government units within whose territory priority areas have been identified must develop their own communication plans. The ultimate goal is the long-term reduction of the incidence of lung cancer, with the effect of the measures, due to the stochastic nature of the disease, expected only after one to two decades.

Source: Narodne novine, official gazette of the Republic of Croatia, No. 115/2026, Zagreb, October 9, 2026, document no. 1374 – Action Plan for Radon for the period up to 2030, Ministry of the Interior; Class: 962-01/24-03/2, Reg. No.: 511-01-327-26-53, Zagreb, October 1, 2026, signed by Minister dr. sc. Davor Božinović, v. r.