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Posted By Terry Smyth
I would be grateful if anyone could advise me on any restrictions on the use of traditional blackboards and chalk.
Obviously there may be an issue over chalk dust and people with breathing difficulties.
I know that blackboards and chalk are freely available, with some additional control measures such as "Liquid Chalk and Anti Dust Chalk" products also on the market.
I would be grateful for any other considerations or opinions!
Thanking you in advance
Regards
Terry
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Posted By Charles Robinson Tech SP
Terry
Are you aware that Traditional Blackboards are made of asbestos and if damaged or used to pin display items on may constitute a risk
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Posted By MichaelM
Terry are you talking about the rollerboards and not the "old fashioned" hard board?
Anyway a COSHH assessment should be performed and the risk to the teacher etc. should be assessed. If you have asthma or other lung condition it would be aggravated by the chalk (it could potentially start a lung condition). If you have a skin condition it could be aggravated etc.
Michael
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Posted By stevehaigh
Replace them with white marker boards
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Posted By Robert S Woods
Do you know of any accounts of teachers getting lung conditions from chalk?
The particles are probably too big to be respirable and the amount produced must be next to none. Without looking in EH40 I can't tell you if there's a WEL but I doubt it except when it's classed as a nuisance dust.
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Posted By David Bannister
Can't see a WEL but I suspect Robert is correct: the exposures will be very low, particularly of respirable dust.
Does this issue belong in the crazy conkers bin?
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Posted By MichaelM
I remember (in the mists of time) when teachers would be cleaning the board, and when the duster became too clogged with chalk dust,they would bang two dusters together. Lots of airborne chalk dust for easy access to the respiratory system! HAving asthma, I remember teachers doing this in front of me at school and it wasn't very good for the old breathing.
Maybe not a major hazard but a known one that we could substitute away easily!
Definitely not a conkers bonkers story. It seems that this is becoming an excuse in some quarters (and I'm not saying that it affects anyone in this thread before I get shouted at) to do nothing!
Michael
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Posted By TBC
Chalk dust - why not spread it around like my teachers used to do. They would pick someone out of the class on a semi-rotational basis to clean the board. Then teach would be off for a break or usually no where near at the time of the cleaning. That way everybody got a little dose of chalk dust at some stage. You would sometimes get a little extra if the teacher threw the duster at you for talking.
Happy days!
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Posted By Robert S Woods
Lets ban the use of chalk just to be on the safe side.
As I'm typing this a chap on the building site opposite is cutting a stone lintel with a sthil saw no ear, eye or respiritory protection. He's probably an exteacher who gave up his career because of post traumatic stress caused by a collegue raising a cloud of lethal chalk dust by banging two board erasers together.
Bob
Ps.
Should I go across and give the 6'2" 16 stone sthil saw operator a lecture on the hazards associated with the work he's carrying out?
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Posted By Robert S Woods
Yes I do know it's spelt Stihl. It's still early.
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Posted By MichaelM
If he is an ex-teacher he may be deaf from the screeching noise of the chalk on the black board, no sorry that should be "Chalk Board". We are no longer allowed to call them "Black Boards" so the title is even more controversial. His lungs will; be lined with a coating of chalk dust so no other dust will affect him. Therefore no PPE requirements.
Michael
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Posted By Paul Leadbetter
Terry
Board chalk is not calcium carbonate (which is chalk in the geological sense - see white cliffs of Dover) but calcium sulphate which, as far as I can recall has not been been subject to any OEL other than total inhalable dust (10 mg m-3) and respirable dust (4 mg m-3). Calcium sulphate is practically inert and the health hazards should be minimal. I would be very surprised if either inhalable or respirable dust got anywhere near the 8-hour limits although peak exposures could be highish when banging two board rubbers together, I suppose.
Paul
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Posted By Rob T
Oh my god!!! Now we have actually hit the lowest point of the lowest point. If the press got hold of this thread I shudder to think what the general public would make of it. You are right this isn't a conkers bonkers story - this is infinitely worse. Chalk dust has never (never never) been a cause of serious injury in the classroom. The teacher throwing the board rubber at unruly children has been though! Is this a total wind-up or is MarkSmark trading under another name?
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Posted By Terry Smyth
Thanks for all responses! I know this seems to be a trivial posting and acknowledge that there is no historical hazard significance.
At first i thought it was a wind up, however I have assured the faculty that presented the query of the low risk rating, with control measures such as the use of liquid chalk, anti dust chalk, full gas tight suits and an air filteration system with 2000 airline breathing appartus sets for all students on the campus!
Once again thanks very much for your responses!
Regards
Terry
PS Just joking about the liquid chalk
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Posted By MichaelM
I got this from an MSDS and it says that if the reaction is:
"Chronic
Long industrial experience with this material has shown that it can cause only minor, reversible health effects on the lungs.
Long-term exposures to high concentrations of dust may cause increased mucous flow in the nose and airways. This condition usually disappears after exposure ceases. Controversy exists as to the role exposure to dust has in the development of chronic bronchitis (inflammation of the air passages into the lungs).
Other factors such as smoking and general air pollution are more important, but dust exposure may also contribute.
Repeated or prolonged exposure to massive concentrations of dust may
cause lung injury by obstruction.
POTENTIAL FOR ACCUMULATION
Does not accumulate in the body. Calcium and sulphate are normal body components."
If someone with a medical conditiopn such as asthma or bronchitis is exposed to chalk dust it will affect them but potentially not other people with no known lung condition. This is the part of the risk assessment we should concentrate on. It doesn't affect the eyes, skin etc. apart from eyes watering and skin being washed.
No conkers bonkers/bouncy castles etc. please.
Michael
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Posted By Ken Taylor
You asked about restrictions. I am only aware of past local education authority and school policies to replace this form of communication and an earlier instruction to refer to blackboards as 'chalkboards' for reasons of political correctness.
At my old school, in addition to the official wooden duster being used as a missile for the inattentive, I can remember the long black sleeves of the masters' gowns being used as dusters (presumably because the wooden ones had been removed or hidden) and chalk dust being fairly widespread on floors and clothing by the end of the day.
However, whilst considering the potential hazards from chalk we should also take the possible benefits into account as I suspect that the chemical constituents would have been useful in bone development and helping to prevent osteoprosis.
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Posted By Paul Leadbetter
'Fraid not, Ken
Calcium sulphate is practically insoluble!
Paul
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Posted By Ken Taylor
Isn't that only at neutral pH, Paul. The homeopaths have been selling the stuff for years (as has the local stationers).
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Posted By Paul Leadbetter
You've got me there, Ken
It's a long time since I was a proper chemist!
Paul
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Posted By John Webster
Gypsum - calcium sulphate - is virtually insoluble at just about any pH.
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Posted By Ken Taylor
- but we are talking stomach acid, etc here. For anyone remotely interested in this discussion, here is some text from the food scientists:
'The Scientific Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Materials in Contact with Food has been asked to evaluate calcium sulphate as a source of calcium for use in the manufacture of foods for particular nutritional uses.
Calcium sulphate is an approved food additive (E 516). It was evaluated by the Scientific
Committee on Food in 1990 and an Acceptable Daily Intake not specified was allocated.
The intake of calcium sulphate from the proposed use can be estimated to be from 531mg (375 mg of sulphate and 156 mg of calcium) to 1062 mg (750 mg of sulphate and 312 mg of calcium) per person per day. This intake is well below the tolerable upper intake level of 2500 mg/person/day for calcium established for adults by the SCF in 2003. The Panel does not anticipate that the additional intake of sulphate from the use of calcium sulphate in waters would result in any adverse effects. In human studies the bioavailability of calcium from calcium sulphate in waters is comparable to that from milk and the sulphate anion does not affect the urinary excretion of calcium.
The Panel concluded that calcium sulphate as a source of calcium for use in foods for particular nutritional uses is not of concern from the safety point of view.'.
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