Why is this a two-part series you may ask? Well, firstly I needed some time to recover from the emotional damage of reading about mining practices, which is something I honestly didn't know a whole lot about before. Second, it seemed practical to have a way to skip to the actionable portion.
So given what was discussed in part 1, here are some options to consider if you are in the market for diamond jewelry. (If you are confused about any of the technical terms in this post and want more information, see Part 1, here).
The star of the show: go lab-grown!
I'll jump to my first question about these. Is growing diamonds in a lab worse for the environment than mining natural ones? The short answer: no.
I did find a webpage from the Gem Society stating "On average, producing one polished carat of lab-grown diamond releases 511 kg of greenhouse gases, more than three times that of one polished carat of mined diamond." That said, as mentioned in Part 1 the amount of greenhouse gasses required to mine a diamond is greatly dependent on its location, and lab-grown gemstones do not require the destruction needed to mine natural ones. Also, less carbon sequestration (sucking up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere) is also an impact of deforestation, which is part of diamond mining.
Another option that is worth mentioning is moissanite, a manmade diamond-lookalike that sits at a whopping 9.25 on the Mohs hardness scale (on that scale diamond is equal to or greater than 10). Moissanite also will not dissolve like salt crystals in water. It can be vulnerable to chlorine found in swimming pools, but so can diamonds.
Synthetic diamond, moissanite, and other lab-grown gemstones like sapphire are also less expensive.
Lab-created quartz also exists and is cheaper too. That said, its Mohs hardness is only 7 so it is very likely to scratch over time if used daily.
Can salt-and-pepper moissanite or diamonds really be lab-grown?
Yep. According to a video made by Fire & Brilliance in 2021, at that time small lab-grown diamond and moissanite was already being grown with inclusions (the little impurities that make the salt and pepper look). Like other vendors, Fire & Brilliance also features these on their website.
Another alternative to consider: pearl
Pearls are not only less pricey, but they don't require mining at all! They also will require much less processing than even grown gemstones, and in terms of overall sustainability they will leave less of a footprint.
The style is quite different, but there is beauty in uniqueness and in celebration of the sea.
However, if you are going to go for a natural mined diamond and would like to buy one that is more ethically sourced than others, here are three questions to consider.
Questions to Consider About Mined Diamonds:
1. Is it KP certified? - While this is a nature blog, if you are here because you care about the environmental impacts of diamonds there is a good chance you also care about the wellbeing of people. The intro section of Part 1 has more information, but as of now most diamonds from well-known retailers are Kimberly Process certified, or not blood diamonds. However, if you don't know, it doesn't hurt to ask first!
2. Where was it mined? - If it was mined in a more northern area such as Canada or Russia, the effects related to air pollution will be worse.
3. How was it mined? - Was it open-pit, underground, or alluvially mined? If alluvial, Alluvial mining uses more rudimentary tools and is more energy-efficient in its overall production, but independent operations do go unregulated which pose more uncertainty for land effects per carat mined.
Bonus: is it made of recycled materials? - Metal requires mining, too! So if you are looking to minimize the amount of moved earth for your jewelry, looking for ones made of recycled materials can also be something to consider
If you are about to get married and thinking of an engagement ring, or are just in the market for non-industrial diamonds, I hope you found this series helpful. At the end of the day, the purpose is not to guilt anyone into throwing away any jewelry they have already bought, or to reduce a much larger issue of mining just to diamonds on jewelry. But rather, just like electric cars or reusable bags hopefully increased awareness can help us all make more environmentally-conscious decisions in everyday life that we can feel good about.
Last Edited 2024-01-08
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