THE CHALK

WHAT IS CHALK?Chalk is a form of limestone that is distinguished by its relative purity and close, fine grain. Humans have been using it for a variety of tasks for centuries, taking advantage of its properties for things like writing on blackboards, marking out fabric patterns for cutting, and delineating game fields in sports like tennis and American football. This mineral is extremely abundant, and it is widely quarried all over the world.The chemical formula for chalk is CaCO3. Its primary ingredient is ancient fossilized sea organisms, which were deposited and subjected to high pressure over centuries, so deposits often occur in areas that were once underwater.

IS CHALK DUST HARMFUL?

• Beyond the human health aspects of chalk dust exposure, there are also potential electronic hazards. Devices such as computers and digital versatile disc (DVD) players stored inside classrooms can suffer damage from accumulated dust.

• his dust can also cause severe damage to sensitive electronics, such as the laser reader of a DVD player or the playback heads of a video cassette recorder (VCR).

• Chalk dust is considered an irritant and an occupational hazard by a number of occupational safety organizations around the world.

There are two separate issues buried in the question of chalk dust safety. In one sense, the main ingredients of this dust are considered to be non-toxic, which simply means they do not pose a threat when ingested. In another sense, this material can and does accumulate in the human respiratory system, which means it can create long-term health problems due to overexposure. In short, swallowing a piece of white chalkboard chalk won't kill a person, but breathing in the dust for a number of years can create or trigger respiratory problems.A small amount of inhaled dust is not considered harmful. Those with healthy respiratory systems can expel it through coughing, and the remaining material should be absorbed safely into the body. For those with chronic breathing issues such as asthma, however, exposure can trigger a reaction.

SOME POSSIBLYS SOLUTION* Thoroughly wash and dry hands with hot water and soap to remove naturally occurring oils from your skin before a climbing session.* Use a fist sized chalk block to rub onto your hands instead of crushing the block down to a powder.* If your hands and the holds are already dry, chalk will actually make them more slippery rather than providing extra grip – you don’t need it.* Brush damp holds clean and dry rather than chalking them up further.* Carry a chalk bucket around rather than wearing a chalkbag around the waist, so that falling off a problem doesn’t result in a chalk explosion.* Use liquid chalks with added resin (strictly indoors though) – a single application will last for around 30 minutes.* Wear appropriate light clothing and short sleeve tops/vests to prevent overheating and excess sweating.* Don’t touch the palms of your hands or fingertips on your hips, the surface of the mat, or anything else in between climbs – keep them aired and cool instead.

HOW TO BE SAFE? HEALTH AND SAFETY AWARENESS RULES /

TIPSPeople who must work around it for extended periods of time may want to use a filtered mask over the mouth and nose and taking a number of breaks in a fresh air environment. They should also use other dustless methods of communication, such as dry erase boards or overhead projectors, whenever possible.In fact, many school systems strongly urge teachers to move students with respiratory problems away from the chalkboard area. Chalkboards, trays and erasers filled with dust should also be cleaned regularly.There is now a product called dustless chalk, designed to address the chalk dust issue. Instead of forming crayons through individual molds, the new chalk mixture is extruded into ropes, then cut to size and allowed to dry. This dustless chalk does generate a form of dust, but the particles are much heavier and tend to fall directly to the floor instead of floating in the air. Exposure to airborne particles has been reduced, but the accumulation of dust elsewhere is still problematic.