For many years, the diamond mining industry has been a source of contention. Most people are aware that "blood diamonds" are diamonds mined in a conflict zone and used to fund more violence by prolonging wars and other atrocities. Unfortunately, this is still a reality today. Even though some countries have signed on to the Kimberley Process, many have not, and blood diamonds do not appear to be going away anytime soon.
Although violence is the most well-known issue associated with diamond mining, it is not the only one. The environmental damage caused by the diamond mining industry is enormous. For example, this article depicts images of the devastation caused by some of the world's top diamond mining companies in South Africa. It devastates the environment, as well as rivers, lakes, and streams. Acid drainage from diamond mines increased pollution by 36% between 1956 and 2003.
The good news is that lab grown diamonds can be an excellent substitute. You should disregard some of the myths surrounding them. Wherever diamonds are mined, the existing population is pushed out and forced to relocate, causing soil quality degradation, deforestation, and soil erosion in the areas where they relocate in large numbers. Unrehabilitated mined areas are not only unsightly, but the destruction is frequently ignored. Although mining companies are required to return mined areas to the same or better condition than when they began mining, this agreement is not always followed.
In South Africa, for example, one of the most well-known mining companies has left the equivalent of 2,000 football fields worth of unrehabilitated mined land, endangering more than 45 plant species.
