Meet Nancy Mora Castro, radon champion and air quality expert

In her role at the City of Kelowna, Nancy helps protect outdoor and indoor air for residents of the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO), the City of Kelowna, the City of West Kelowna, the District of Peachland, the District of Lake Country and Westbank First Nation.

Her work spans research and projects on air particulates, idling bylaws, Safe Routes 4 Schools, low-cost air quality particulate matter sensors, and alternatives to wood burning.

She began her career in Mexico as an industrial engineer in chemistry and completed a Master of Science in Environmental Engineering focused on pollution prevention and control in 1999. After moving to Canada in 2010, she joined the City of Kelowna in 2013, and led and integrated the advisory group to update the Clean Air Strategy.

While much of the Clean Air Strategy focuses on outdoor air quality, Nancy has brought a singular dedication and focus to indoor quality issues, which include volatile organic compounds and radon. 

In 2020, Nancy initiated an indoor air quality project with a focus on radon. She secured more than 1,260 free radon detectors through the Take Action on Radon test kit challenge, the BC Lung Foundation, and the Vancouver Foundation, to distribute to medical offices, homes and businesses in Kelowna and adjoining local government regions.

“It’s so worth it to get the message out about radon and to share information so people can make informed decisions,” Nancy says. In all, Nancy has helped distribute close to 3,600 detectors in the region since 2020. She’s planning to apply for funding to keep the programs going.

Building on the success of the 2020 test kit challenge, in 2021/22 Nancy initiated a project to screen for radon in 45 schools in School District 23, and in 10 independent schools. Her school radon initiative sparked a partnership with Interior Health to expand radon testing to all Southern Interior school districts. In 2022/23, IH sent out more than 4,000 radon detectors to schools across the Interior region, and the project is now in its second year.

When Nancy launched 2023’s radon test kit challenge in the RDCO, she received an overwhelming 1,365 requests for detectors. With the help of Health Canada and the BC Centre for Disease Control, 810 detectors are being allocated this fall, and with the support of IH Environmental Public Health, an additional 570 detectors are being allocated to waiting residents in January.

Nancy’s efforts have earned her an Everyday Champion nomination for the BC Quality Awards, and the accolades of her peers at Interior Health.

“I cannot stand still,” she says. “I like to say, ‘Let’s do this!’ I’m always thinking of what to do next.”

Health Canada places the lifetime risk of getting lung cancer at the Canadian guideline of 200 Becquerels/m³ at one in 50 people, far greater than exposure to other carcinogens that are nationally regulated. Add smoking to the mix and the risk of lung cancer greatly increases. 

The only way to know how much radon is in your home, work and indoor leisure spaces is to test.

Learn more about radon gas and testing