Resource Card : Diamond
Main regions of extraction : Botswana, Russia, Canada, Namibia, Angola, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Australia, Congo (in 2015)
Method of extraction : industrial or traditional
- Pipe mining (primary deposits): open-pit mining, underground mining
- Alluvial mining (secondary deposits)
- Marine mining
Process of recovery :
1- Crushing
2 – Scrubbing
3 – Cyclonic separation plant
4 – Recovery
5 – Cleaned, weighted and packaged
Stakeholders : States, mining firms, luxury goods industry, customers, rebel armed groups, workers…
Key issues :
- Conflict/blood diamond : human right abuses, labor conditions, child labor, violence, civil wars…
- Kimberley Process : ignores some issues (human rights abuse, environment…)
- Environmental costs : land and water devastated
- Illegal mining
- Traceability
Exchange rate : Mineral : Nasdaq OTC Bull : 0.0228 USD (+3.64%)
Other key words :
4 C’s : cut, clarity, color, carat weight
Synthetic diamonds
Ethical diamonds
Intersection of Forest Protection Act with Traditional Bamboo Weavers
As Forest Protection Laws became more stringent in India, the access of local inhabitants into forests became heavily restricted. I was in based in Dewas District of Madhya Pradesh (Central India) for a year in 2016 when I got in touch with Jhabral tribal community, a traditional bamboo weaving community.… Read More
The Urgent Need for Groundwater Governance: Role of Local Communities
While the groundwater is drawn to unsustainable levels at a global level, can local communities provide a solution to restore depleting water table? Hiwre Bazar is a model village in India known for its water restoring management.… Read More
Role and Responsibility of Switzerland in the Commodity Trade Sector
Switzerland, a resource-poor country, rose in only a few years to the world-wide biggest “turntable” for commodity trading. Switzerland is home to about 500 companies specialised in commodity trading and extraction, including giants such as Glencore, Vale, Cargill, Vitol and Trafigura.
A Heist by the Riverside: Proliferation of Sand Mining and Potential Reforms
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A cursory glance of existent literature gauging the frequency and impact of environmental disasters on riverine settlements reveals worrying trends. These localities –transcending national divides – have become increasingly prone to crippling flash floods, accelerated soil erosion and dwindling groundwater levels.… Read More
Finland, the new lithium powerhouse?
Lithium is in high demand all over the world. Now mining for the valuable metal is about to start in Finland.
There are only very few places where lithium is enriched to levels that allow for commercially viable production.… Read More
Venturing the Uncharted: Regulating Fishing in the Arctic Ocean
The 21st Century is rife with narratives of threats and opportunities arising from dramatic climate shifts. Contemporary transfiguration of the Arctic marinescape attest to this trend: for perhaps the first time in 100,000 years, the northern extremities are traversable by deep sea trawlers.… Read More
Turkish Stream: a New Ambition?
Turkish Stream Pipeline Project is the successor of the canceled South Stream Pipeline Project. After Turkey downed Russian fighter jet, the relations between Turkey and Russia were strained. However, with the apology coming from Turkey, the landscape was about to change.… Read More
Deep geological depositary: from global extractions to global insertions ?
What is it?
Geological disposal involves isolating radioactive waste deep inside a suitable rock volume to ensure that no harmful quantities of radioactivity ever reach the surface environment. The waste is contained inside multiple barriers to provide protection over hundreds of thousands of years.… Read More