Small to medium jewelers find it easier to ethically source precious metals

Environmental NGO EARTHWORKS says 60 jewelry retailers or 1/4 of the U.S. jewelry market are calling on mining to ethically source their metals through environmentally and socially responsible practices.

RENO, NV - 

Small to medium size companies are more readily able to achieve the environmental and social standards sought by NGOs than their larger counterparts, the most recent survey of the No Dirty Gold campaign revealed.

The survey, which is traditionally released and publicized during the heavy jewelry buying of the Valentine's season, found the jewelry industry is definitely making progress on the ethical sourcing of metals.

Nevertheless, the survey's parent, Washington, D.C.-based EARTHWORKS special interest NGO, insists there is a critical need for a "widely accepted, independent, third-party certification system similar to those in forestry or other sectors that can assure a customer or retailer of the exact provenance of gold in jewelry or electronic circuits."

However, EARTHWORKS found "encouraging signs in this direction; in recent years there has been significant progress made towards establishing such a system."

EARTHWORKS advocates the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) for large-scale gold mining. While the organization acknowledged industry-only insurance mechanisms, such as the Responsible Jewelry Council (RJC), EARTHWORKS says it fails to satisfy the Golden Rules Principles advocated by EARTHWORKS and Oxfam America.

Signatories to the Golden Rules pledge to work to ensure their suppliers of precious metals use the following practices:

--Respect basic human rights as outlined in international conventions and laws;

--Obtain the free, prior and informed consent of impacted communities;

--Respect workers' rights and labor standards including safety;

--Not operating in areas of armed or militarized conflict;

--Not forcing communities off their lands;

--Not using water bodies or streams for mine waste or tailings;

--Not operating in fragile ecosystems, protected areas, or other places of high conservation or ecological value;

--Not polluting water, soil or air with acid drainage or other toxic chemicals;

--Paying all costs of closure and reclamation of mine sites;

--Allowing independent verification audits.

Jewelers also commit to auditing their current metal sources, to inform their suppliers of the Golden Rules and to increase recycled content in their products.

WINNERS AND SINNERS

EARTHWORKS says 60 jewelers have signed the Golden Rules. However, large jewelry retailers such as Target, Amazon, Costco, Harry Winston Diamond (which is also a miner), Home Shopping Network, Macy's, and Neiman-Marcus have not signed the rules or refused to do so, according to the report.

Among the recent signatories to the rules are Blue Nile and Sears.

A number of small to medium-sized retailers received "A" ratings in the survey including Brilliant Earth, Creed Jewellery, Lena Marie Echelle Designs and Real Jewels.  It should be noted that a number of these companies reported there are sourcing primarily from small-scale mining operations, and in some instances, using recycled previous metals.

No major jewelry retailers achieved an "A" ranking in the survey. However, the top ranked large retailers included Birks & Mayors, Tiffany & Co., and class-ring manufacturer Herff Jones, which all achieved a "B" grade.

EARTHWORKS noted Birks & Mayors and Tiffany "have taken additional implementation steps towards responsible mining, including supporting the Boreal Forest Conservation Framework, supporting responsible mining law reform, maximizing material and energy efficiency and using renewable energy at facilities, and supporting responsible small-sc ale mining initiatives."

Meanwhile, EARTHWORKS, other environmental NGOs, sports fishery, native communities, commercial fishery and wildlife groups have pushed jewelers to sign the Bristol Bay Protection Pledge.

The report claims that 20 leading jewelers have expressed their opposition to the mine. "Many have now signed the Bristol Bay Protection Pledge to show their support for protection of the Bristol Bay watershed."

These retailers have pledged not to sell jewelry from the Anglo American-Northern Dynasty Pebble mine project. They have also advocated "permanent protection of the Bristol Bay Fishery Reserve from large-scale metals mining."

To obtain a copy of the survey, "Tarnished Gold?" go to www.earthworksaction.org

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