Nevada students are invited to showcase their artistic talents and promote radon awareness by entering the 2017 Nevada Radon Poster Contest, offered by University of Nevada Cooperative Extension's Radon Education Program. The contest ends Oct. 31.

The contest is open to all children ages 9 to 14 years old enrolled in public, private, territorial, tribal, Department of Defense and home schools. Children can also enter through a sponsoring group, such as art, computer, library, reading, science, scouting, youth or 4-H clubs.

Radon is a radioactive, colorless, odorless and tasteless gas that comes from the decay of uranium. It accumulates in homes and can cause lung cancer. This type of lung cancer risk is preventable, and the only way to know if a home has elevated levels is to test for it.

The poster contest is offered by the Nevada Radon Education Program and is sponsored by University of Nevada Cooperative Extension and the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health. Cash prizes for the top three entries are $75 for first place, $60 for second and $45 for third. The top three entries are also awarded cash prizes for their teachers or sponsoring organization's representative toward classroom supplies. The winning entries also go on to compete in the National Radon Poster Contest. Last year, Nevada winner Chris Rowe, from Carson Valley Middle School, went on to place first in the national contest and received $1,000 with his poster, "Uncle Radon."

The Nevada Radon Poster Contest is part of Cooperative Extension's work to raise awareness of the dangers of radon in homes. Extension provides educational presentations and low-cost radon test kits year-round, and since 2008, more than 23,388 homes in Nevada have been tested. Of 19,273 valid test results collected, 4,902 homes have had elevated radon concentrations. Once radon is detected, there are fairly easy, inexpensive ways to reduce the radon exposure and reduce the risk of lung cancer.

Posters in this year's poster contest should convey one of these messages: 1) What is radon? 2) Where does radon come from? 3) How does radon get into our homes? 4) Radon can cause lung cancer, and 5) Test your home for radon. Posters will be judged on content accuracy, visual communication of the topic, reproducibility and originality. They can be created with crayon, markers, paint, collage, pencil, photographs or computer graphics.

There is no fee to enter, but each child is limited to one entry. Entries must be received at 4955 Energy Way, Reno, NV 89502 by Oct. 31.

Contact Susan Howe, radon program director for Cooperative Extension, at 775-336-0248 or robertss@unce.unr.edu for more information on the contest. For more information on the dangers of radon and the Nevada Radon Education Program, visit http://www.unce.unr.edu/programs/sites/radon/ or call the Radon Hotline at 1-888-Radon10 (888-723-6610).