In a further update to the theme of the good that diamonds do, we learned today that Russian diamond mining giant ALROSA has been ranked by the UN Office in the Russian Federation among the top three firms for environmental responsibility among Russian mining and smelting companies.
The environmental responsibility rating has been jointly developed by the World Wildlife Fund, the United Nations Development Programme, the Global Environment Facility, and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation. Each participating company was assessed according to three factors: environmental management, environmental impact, and disclosure/transparency, which included more than 30 criteria. ALROSA was placed in the top of all three sections. The rating covered a total of 33 companies.
ALROSA, like De Beers and many other diamond miners, makes tremendous efforts to reduce its environmental impact in order to protect the areas in which it operates. Indeed, so widespread are ALROSA’s activities that it spent approximately $930 million last year alone on environmental protection activities, while the total relevant expenditures for 2012-2016 came to more than $4.65 billion.
It’s not just miners that are investing in environmental and corporate social responsibility projects, of course. There are three companies that immediately come to mind in this respect. Rosy Blue has been quietly donating money for education, health and other projects in India for many years. And at the other end of the pipeline from the miners, jewelry retailer Tiffany & Co has appointed a corporate social responsibility executive, and Signet Jewelers has taken a big stand on responsible sourcing.
