PeteHall
  • PeteHall
  • 50.2% (Neutral)
  • Newbie Topic Starter
16 years ago
I was wanting to visit Hope Level in Stanhope, with the intention of having a look at Hope Level Four Fathom cave; I like caves as well as mines.

In the caving guide Northern Caves, it mentions "dangerous concentrations of radon prohibiting any visit".

My copy of the guide was published in 1988. Does anyone know if the radon is still a problem?

I know nothing about radon, was it released by the mining activity? Will concentrations have dropped in the last 20 years? Is it a problem anyway if you're only there for a few hours? :confused:


The distance between stupidity and genius is measured only by success.
sparty_lea
16 years ago
I'm no expert on the matter but I doubt the radon in Hope Level is significantly worse than in many other mines in the dales, just somebody bothered to measure it in there.
Also as you suggest what constitutes dangerous exposure for someone working every day in a place is quite a bit less than going for a few hours visit.

The cave is pretty good for this part of the world though, you can actually stand up in quite a bit of it, unlike most the caves round here which are fit only for rabbits :lol:
There are 10 types of people in the world.

Those that understand binary and those that do not!
carnkie
16 years ago
It's a chemical element that occurrs naturally usually by the decay of radium. It is a major health hazard and is the second most frquent cause of lung cancer in the US. Normally this is caused by a build up of the gas in enclosed spaces. Uranium miners were at particular risk because it's a product of the former. I've no idea whether concentrations would have dropped in the last twenty years but am inclined to think they may have risen unless there has been a change with the ventilation of the cave.
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.
sparty_lea
16 years ago
Anyone who spends alot of time in caves, or abandoned mines, is going to have higher than average exposure to radon, if you are employed to do it then the Exposure to Ionising Radiation Regulations apply but if its recreational then you can suit yourself what you do.
There was alot of controversy about radon exposure in the 1980s and early 90s and lots of publicity about it. One effect of that is all new build in susceptible areas (including Weardale) has to be radon-proofed.
There really doesn't seem to be much precise information about exposure levels in different mines partly because they vary within the same working and over time, and what is 'safe' and whats not is next to impossible to determine.
Short of getting a personal detector and wearing it you might as well
a/give up caving
or
b/ forget about it.

IMHO 😉
There are 10 types of people in the world.

Those that understand binary and those that do not!
Wormster
16 years ago
The latest copy of DESCENT magaziene has a lot of info on Radon exposure.
Better to regret something you have done - than to regret something you have not done.
Knocker
16 years ago
Just had a letter arrive, offering a free radon test on my house, I'm certainly going to take it up, if it is over 200Bq/m3 I'll be back to the builders!
carnkie
16 years ago
"sparty_lea" wrote:

I'm no expert on the matter but I doubt the radon in Hope Level is significantly worse than in many other mines in the dales, just somebody bothered to measure it in there.
Also as you suggest what constitutes dangerous exposure for someone working every day in a place is quite a bit less than going for a few hours visit.

The cave is pretty good for this part of the world though, you can actually stand up in quite a bit of it, unlike most the caves round here which are fit only for rabbits :lol:



Could always convert it to a Health Spa.

http://www.clui.org/clui_4_1/lotl/lotlfw97/mine.html 
The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.
sparty_lea
16 years ago
"carnkie" wrote:



Could always convert it to a Health Spa.

http://www.clui.org/clui_4_1/lotl/lotlfw97/mine.html 



Ha ace!
"Hope Level" even has the name for it!
They'd have alot of clearing up to do first though. You climb over manky timber at every step from what I remember...... or maybe there's health benefits to be had from that too
😉
There are 10 types of people in the world.

Those that understand binary and those that do not!
PeteHall
  • PeteHall
  • 50.2% (Neutral)
  • Newbie Topic Starter
16 years ago
Thanks for the advice, I assumed it wouldn't be any worse than anywhere else, but thought I'd check given the warning in Northern Caves.

I like the idea of "health benefits" from mine exploring, I'll have to use this as a selling point for my club :thumbsup:
The distance between stupidity and genius is measured only by success.
roadsterman
16 years ago
When we reopened Hope Level in the early 70`s the NRPB measured the radon levels in all the open Weardale mines, and Hope level had a significantly higher level than anywhere else,this was soon remedied by venting, however it did mean that we had to take samples for them every week until we had to buy a Radon meter of our own.The levels of Radon were never a problem in any of the mines after that.So to answer your question about the levels now, all I can say is that the level has stood unused for a lot longer time than it had when we took it over.I only know all this because it was my job to measure the Radon levels until I managed to pass it on to some other poor sod. It was such a tedious job. 🙂
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