As a knee-jerk environmentalist (Yes, I came of age in the sixties/seventies), I have no patience with mining companies destroying the environment. Here in Colorado we have a nasty place called the Climax Mine, high in the rockies, which is basically one big 10-square-mile cesspool. Yet trying to bring pressure to bear on such companies via a chain-of-warranties, isn't that awfully inefficient? Wouldn't it just be better to pass tough "you can't destroy the environment" laws, so that a minining company is REQUIRED to clean up its act, and more or less restore the beauty of the Earth, after it does its mining thing? I mean, if, as a society, we think businesses should not destroy the Earth, why don't we just make that a law? Isn't that what government is for? Trying to enforce proper behavior via consumer shopping habits has got to be the most inefficient way of accomplishing anything that I can imagine. On the other hand, I could be wrong.

Jaques, Of course a law telling miners to clean up after themselves is desirable, but first we'll need to wait to see who wins the presidential election. One party will be open to more environmental laws, and the other will not. Assuming the democrats win, then I we'll see more environmental laws enacted and you can encourage your congressperson to introduce a bill. But passing laws takes time. Meanwhile, questioning your manufacturers and suppliers and encouraging transparency up the supply chain is important. The sooner the miners get the message that responsible mining practices are becoming increasingly important to their customers, the sooner they will start looking at their operations and what they can do to improve. If their bottom line is affected by customers sourcing metals from competing, more responsible companies, they'll consider changing.

Yes, these issues are now here to stay, and do need to be addressed now. Many of our customers and might-be customers are certainly thinking about them! One thing we can do is to point out that jewelry will not be discarded the way that used computers, cell phones, toasters and other items are that end up in land fills. Jacques brings up good points, and is of a similar mind that I have been for some time; namely, Recycling! Yes, there are methods of recycling that are woefully inefficient, but there are some that work quite well. If we do not start doing more recycling, it will eventually be mandated by law at some point. We can point out to customers that precious metals are oftenly recycled, and we can use the "green"-recycled-metals in our businesses as well. Yes, it does take time, no one will dispute that. Meanwhile, the best we can do for our own peace of mind and that of our customers is to follow some sort of protocol like that of the Kimberley Process, so our customers will remain- our customers!

Not to get overly partisan on here, since we're not a political magazine, but Christina's point about the election is a good one. If people are shouting "Drill! Drill!" at Republican rallies, it's a pretty clear message that their agenda may not be in tune with what seems to be a rising sentiment among consumers. If I were a jeweler, I'd still go with the consumers, for the Earth's sake as well as our business's sake.