Why was the malachite specimen on the table for the death rocks episode? I work with that stuff and I'd live to know if I need to take precautions beyond gloves and a mask!
We had pulled out the malachite to discuss potential dangers of copper mining. While that particular specimen didn’t make the final cut of the show, overall that was the theme with most of the minerals featured: aside from asbestos, the dangers of those elements really come from inhaling fine particulate matter, or directly ingesting them, over a significant period of time. Which, when you think about the prolific use of things like leaded paint or gas, mercury and asbestos in household goods and widely-used products in the 21st century, then overall risk increases. The risk also increases when you work in the manufacturing industry as an occupational hazard, which your employer ought to make abundantly clear to you ahead of time.
If you want to learn more about this stuff and make sure you/your home/your family aren’t at risk for exposure to potentially harmful substances, check out the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. It’s a pretty cool website and I’m not just saying that facetiously, the information is great.
tl;dr unless you’re chewing on it or snorting it you’re probably fine.