The Future of Gemstones
In the developed world where more sophisticated technology is available, gemstone production is definitely declining. In the USA, for example, the production of natural gemstones fell 25% from 2000 to 2004. To a large degree, this is the result of the high cost of mining the remaining material. This has happened in Australia as well, where many of the biggest sapphire mines have shut down because of the high cost of mining there.
Many of the world's colored gemstone mines are in troubled places - Burma, Pakistan, Kenya, Afghanistan, Colombia - and this affects the rate at which supplies are depleted. In addition, in the developing world most mining is still "artisanal". In Africa, the vast majority of colored gemstone mining is done by independent, small-scale miners, working in remote locations. Gem mining in Southeast Asia continues to use primitive methods which cannot be scaled up when demand increases. In any case, most deposits are too small to be economically exploited with the use of heavy equipment.
While most colored gemstone mining worldwide is highly distributed and small scale, a notable exception is in South America. Amethyst, citrine, and ametrine are produced at the Anahi Mine, which is located in Eastern Bolivia in the province of Santa Cruz. 
Amethyst, Citrine and Ametrine from Bolivia
This mine is known for the volume and uniform quality of its gemstones and is the only known deposit of ametrine. In 2005 the mine produced a total of 11 million cut stones in a variety of grades and sizes. This included six million carats of amethyst, three million carats of ametrine, and two million carats of citrine. But this is not sustainable. The output at the mine has decreased in the last year, and dealers are reporting a shortage of good amethyst and rough, as well as ametrine.
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- First Published: December-20-2007
- Last Updated: January-24-2019
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