I want to preface this by saying that nothing is perfect. My preference for lab-grown gemstones doesn’t mean that they are exempt from environmental cost and they still pose their own set of challenges. There is no doubt that natural gemstones are incredible things created within the surface of our earth, but the means by which they are extracted are toxic, often supplemented with life threatening working conditions, and for what? Is it worth it?
It is predicted that the global diamond industry will be producing 13.26Mt of GHG emissions by 2100, with 583Mt of mineral waste produced in the process and water use up to 108Mm3 annually, according to the DEIE projections. Comparatively,
“lab-grown diamonds can reduce annual GHG emissions, mineral waste, and water usage by 9.58 Mt, 421.06 Mt, and 66.70 million m3 in 2100.”
This would mean saving 714Mm3 of landfill space, saving land that could be used to feed 436 million people.
Traditional mining relies on heavy machinery, explosives, hydraulic equipment, and vast amounts of water. Diamond mining specifically produced 57kg of GHG emissions per carat. For reference, 1 carat = 0.2 grams. That is an astonishing amount of emissions for such a small result. In addition, there are 2.63 TONS(!) of mineral waste produced, consuming 0.48m3 of water in the process. Now looking at lab grown gemstones, when utilizing clean energy sources, they result in a mere 0.028 grams of GHG emissions, 0.0006 tonnes of mineral waste, and 0.07 m³ of water usage per carat (Sun Y. et al, 2024).
The environmental benefits are obvious, but what about the people? Guyana is a country rich in natural resources with gold, diamonds, oil and gas being their largest exports. 18% of the population rely on these factors for employment. De Beers, the largest diamond company in the world, recently invested in lab grown processes and have the ability to produce 400,000 lab grown diamonds a year. Additionally, Pandora are switching to entirely lab grown stones (although, less than 1% of their gemstones were mined anyway). What does this mean for the people in countries like Guyana who rely on mining for their livelihood? With consumers becoming more conscious about ethics in the products they buy, it seems that these companies, instead of investing in the communities that give them their product, invested instead in processes that entirely eliminated them. The social aspect of sustainability is so often neglected, and it’s incredibly unethical of these companies to build up communities that rely on them to turn around and walk away (McClure T., 2021).
Gemstone mining in Myanmar, this industry has caused instability and conflict rather than improving the quality of life for citizens and providing additional employment to the country.
Something I’m interested in is offcuts from the scientific industry. Stones like sapphires, LuAG, LYSO, and many others are used for applied physics - like in PET scanners, lasers, gamma ray detectors etc. These produce amazingly coloured large chunks of gemstone and offcuts can be purchased by talented lapidary artists to cut into beautiful stones for jewellers. In my opinion, these are much more exciting than traditionally grown gemstones and it feels a little more like you’re contributing to a circular economy. Do I personally have the finances to work with them now? No! But one day I will, and you will be able to see those creations made from start to finish.
