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Diamond mining and environmental and social impacts academic article
Diamond mining and environmental and social impacts academic article
Importance of Diamonds
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The mineral diamond can be found in various places. Diamonds are found on planets such as earth, uranus, neptune, saturn, and jupiter. The atmospheres of these planets have the perfect temperature and air pressure conditions to host the carbon in form for the diamond. Diamonds must be in an area with very high temperatures and high pressure for the diamond minerals to be able to form. They need the high temperatures to allow them to become stable ad have a good foundation. The identifying characteristics of the mineral are color, streak, luster, density, hardness, cleavage, fracture, tenacity, and crystal habit. The streak is the color when it has been made into a fine powder. Hardness is the level of difficulty with which a smooth surface …show more content…
Jewelry, such as rings or necklaces have diamonds because they have great durability. They are very hard so they are useful for cutting, grinding, or drill other materials. They are on many cutting blades or drills on the tips and blades to make a strong cutting edge. They are used to make tools stronger al last longer and make many people wear very beautiful jewlery. Diamonds are very expensive because they are very beautiful and have various uses in society. Diamonds account for 33%of the GDP of Botswana. People purchase diamonds for wedding rings. The cost for diamonds is very high because there isn't a super ton of them, they have to work very hard to find the diamonds and them work hard to make them look nice. The environmental impact is huge from the mining of diamonds. It affects the surrounding areas wildlife and natural surrounding horribly. 1750 tons of earth is extracted to find 1ct diamond. 20 tons of mined waste is produced to make a gold ring. Mining decreases the wildlife in the area from taking away the wildlife habitat. Air pollution results from the production of laboratory created diamonds. The waste rock may have leach chemicals such as acids, into the surrounding water. It will then impact the waters system quality. Eventually killing off the animals that drink that water and also the fish that live in the water, the contaminated water will then spread to other bodies of water and then have a snowball effect by killing
Deep within African mines, elusive diamonds lay enveloped in the Earth’s crust. Possessing much influence, beauty, and tension, nature’s hardest known substance causes parallel occurrences of unity and destruction on opposite sides of the globe. Diamonds, derived from the Greek word "adamas", meaning invincible, are formed deep within the mantle, and are composed entirely from carbon. Moreover, only under tremendous amounts of heat and pressure can diamonds form into their preliminary crystal state. In fact, diamonds are formed approximately 150km- 200km below the surface and at radical temperatures ranging from 900-1300 C°. When these extremes meet, carbon atoms are forced together creating diamond crystals. Yet how do these gems, ranking a ten on Moh’s hardness scale, impact the individual lives of millions of people besides coaxing a squeal out of brides-to-be? These colorless, yellow, brown, green, blue, reddish, pink, grey and black minerals are gorgeous in their cut state, but how are these otherwise dull gems recognized and harvested? Furthermore, how and why is bloodshed and violence caused over diamonds in Africa, the supplier of approximately 65% of the world’s diamonds? (Bertoni) The environmental, social, and economic impact of harvesting, transporting, and processing diamonds is crucial because contrary to popular belief, much blood has been spilled over first-world “bling”.
Should diamonds be seen as such highly sought-after, luxury goods, and marketed and sold at such extravagant amounts? While some individuals might be of the impression that diamonds are lavishly priced, because of limited supply, it is of my opinion that a very shrewdly-created cartel disguises the very reason for these “rare” gems seemingly being worth your “pretty penny”.
Analysis Introduction This project belongs in the engineering-efficiency category; therefore, it has to fit at least 3 of 4 performance hurdles, which are 1. Impact on EPS; 2.Payback; 3.Discounted cash flow and 4. Internal rate of return. In this article, some of those involved explained and described their opinions; however, professional knowledge may have been lacking.
Valuing a diamond is a highly skilled task thus not traded on world frequently. (Valued on the basis of four criteria- 4C s carat clarity color and cut)
A beautiful precious diamond can last forever, but what most people do not know is that a majority of our diamonds come from Africa. The civil wars in Africa over diamonds began around 1961 and ended in 2003. Conflict diamonds were rampant and it would be difficult to say if any jewelry sold prior to 2003 was conflict free. Conflict diamonds are diamonds that have been mined and were controlled by African rebels. The rebels would use the profits from selling conflict diamonds to fund illegal activity and to purchase more weapons for their armies. While rebels had control of the diamond mines they killed approximately 4 million people and countless families were displaced.
A young English boy’s failing health triggered his family to send him to South Africa in hopes that the hot climate would turn his ailing health around. During the late nineteenth century, Cecil John Rhodes, joined his brother in the fields to pick cotton. Rhodes soon moved on to the more lucrative field to pick diamonds. This excursion led Rhodes, whom the infamous "Rhodes Scholar" was named after, to a path that defined and dominated the diamond industry worldwide. He created, through a series of diamond mine purchases, what is known today as De Beers S.A. Established in 1888, De Beers, through Rhodes, rose to a height of controlling 90% of the world’s diamond market. This illustrious giant was shrewd, intelligent, and he clearly understood price elasticity and the power of supply and demand. Moreover, he used the economic forces to his advantage and ultimately created a diamond Cartel. His ingenious move occurred in convincing the sellers (diggers) and buyers that their mutual interests were to keep prices high and steady. As a result, he formed a “Diamond Syndicate” that set prices and a monopoly was formed. De Beers created the perpetual illusion that diamonds were a scarce commodity, which enabled retail prices to remain high.
It’s hard to imagine that a mineral could be fueling wars and funding corrupt governments. This mineral can be smuggled undetected across countries in a coat pocket, then be sold for vast amounts of money. This mineral is used in power tools, parts of x-ray machines, and microchips but mostly jewelry. Once considered the ultimate symbol of love, the diamond has a darker story. "Blood" diamonds or "conflict" diamonds are those mined, polished, or traded in areas of the world where the rule of law does not exist. They often originate in war-torn countries like Liberia, Sierra Leone, Angola, and Côte d'Ivoire were rebels use these gems to fund genocide or other questionable objectives. Even with a system known as the Kimberly process which tracks diamonds to prevent trade of these illicit gems, infractions continue as the process is seriously flawed. The continuation of the blood diamond trade is inhuman, and unethical, and in order to cease this illicit trade further action to redefine a conflict diamond, as well as reform to the diamond certification prosess is nessasary.
Engagement rings initially served a double purpose. In the days when brides were purchased, these rings were partial payment for the bride in addition to symbolizing the groom's intentions and woman's agreement. Diamonds were first found in Medieval Italy and due to their hardness symbolized enduring love.
...een surrounded by contention from all sides. An obvious cartel, they monopolized the diamond industry for decades and remain a powerful player in the diamond industry. De Beers flourished and grew over the years, establishing itself as an international diamond cartel that was highly successful, ruthless against its competitors, and king in the world of diamonds. With a wealth of diamonds at its fingertips, the possibilities were endless. They encouraged the mythology surrounding diamonds, touting them as rare and highly valuable. With diamond values in the billions, the company still kept a stronghold on its diamonds and touted them as rarities. Diamonds are not rare and the only reason they have been so is because of De Beers. Their strict regulation of diamonds has supported ridiculously high prices and an artificially inflated value that remains to this day.
- Cutters sell the cut diamonds to the dealers who in turn sell them to the jewelry stores.
It can serve as a fashion accessory since there are different types you can select from to match your attire. Prices depend on the type of beads used to create the necklace.
For the past sixty-seven years, the citizens of India have embraced their country’s independence all the while seeking to regain their past. Prior to this renewed sense of freedom, India had belonged to the British Empire. From 1858 to 1947, the British government claimed India and its inhabitants as a colonial possession. Before the British Empire laid claim to the vastness of India, the British East India Company helped to oversee the transfer of the Kohinoor Diamond from the Sikh Empire to their motherland in 1851.
Santarossa, B. (2004, January 13). Diamonds: Adding lustre to the Canadian economy. Retrieved November 06, 2017, from https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-621-m/11-621-m2004008-eng.htm
The value of diamonds lies in their physical properties that make them suitable for many applications. Natural diamonds are only of high value if they are scarce in nature. Realizing this, De Beers Consolidated Mines was formed to control the supply of diamonds from mines across the world. The diamond market is influenced by mine production, rough diamond distribution, preparation/cutting, and retail markets. The project will be focused on the retail markets for diamonds and other high-end jewelry.
In our days, mining for resources is inevitable. The resources we need are valuable in everyday life. Such resources mined up are coal, copper, gold, silver, and sand. However, mining poses environmental risks that can degrade the quality of soil and water, which can end up effecting us humans if not taken care of and many of the damages are irreversible once they have occurred.