[Jewelry making - Article 01371] - [Orchid] NRC May OK Existing Blue Topaz Stocks

[Rick Copeland]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========

    The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) may be on the verge of
    allowing U.S. importers of blue topaz and other irradiated gemstones
    to sell their existing inventories. The agency is considering
    enforcing old regulations and applying new ones only with regard to
    future imports, said a senior official in a recent interview. 

    From the GIA Insider 
    September 28, 2007 

    Industry Analysis: NRC May OK Existing Blue Topaz Stocks 

        The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) may be on the verge of
        allowing U.S. importers of blue topaz and other irradiated
        gemstones to sell their existing inventories. The agency is
        considering enforcing old regulations and applying new ones only
        with regard to future imports, said a senior official in a
        recent interview. 

        Duncan White, chief of the NRC's State Agreements and Industrial
        Safety Branch, said that, since the beginning of this month, the
        commission has been te.sting inventories of irradiated gemstones
        held by companies around the U.S. Regulatory agencies in several
        states have helped with these tests, he said. Thus far, the NRC
        has found no health or safety problems, and consequently is
        considering an approach that would substantially soften the
        impact of its renewed attention to irradiated gems. 

        "Right now, we are considering 'grandfathering' existing
        inventories of all blue topaz within the U.S. - allowing
        companies to sell their goods and applying new requirements only
        to material still overseas," White said. "We understand the
        effect these changes might have on businesses, and we want to
        reach a resolution that is fair to everyone." 

        White emphasized that this "grandfathering" policy would apply
        only to gems over which the NRC currently has jurisdiction:
        those treated in a nuclear reactor. These include the more
        intense hues of blue topaz such as "London" and "Swiss" blue, as
        well as irradiated colored diamonds, some types of tourmaline,
        golden beryl, and cultured freshwater pearls. 

        White offered no timetable for when the "grandfathering"
        approach could become official - "that's the question on
        everyone's minds" - because the commission is still evaluating
        inventories and will continue to do so until it is satisfied
        there is no health threat. 

        Since the 1980s, reactor-treated gems have been subject to
        requirements that they be released into the marketplace only
        after being tested for residual radiation in an NRC-licensed
        facility. This regulation was widely ignored over the past
        decade, however, as nearly every NRC-licensed testing and
        distribution facility had ceased operating or allowed their
        licenses to expire. The gemstone industry had, in the words of
        the NRC, fallen into noncompliance. Controversy erupted earlier
        this year when the NRC announced it would expand its rules to
        cover blue topaz and other gemstones irradiated in a second type
        of treatment apparatus: a linear accelerator (linac). The change
        is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register shortly,
        and the rule will go into effect 60 days after publication. 

        The NRC has received "a number of applications for license
        renewal" in recent weeks, White said. He added that importers
        and processors who already hold NRC licenses will have six
        months to apply for the additional license for linac-irradiated
        gems. Those who do not hold an existing license will have one
        year to obtain one. 

        The "grandfathering" will not apply to the new rule covering
        linac treatment, because the NRC will have jurisdiction over
        those goods only after the new policy takes effect and the trade
        should have sufficient time to bring itself into compliance.
        Such goods can currently be sold without restriction, but it is
        often difficult to separate reactor-irradiated from
        linac-irradiated gems. 

        The industry's lack of compliance and the NRC notice prompted
        many large retailers to begin pulling blue topaz jewelry from
        their display cases, some returning the pieces to the
        manufacturer. Dealers surveyed this week noted that demand was
        still down, though buying has picked up from the summer, when
        sales nearly stopped after the controversy broke. 

        DIAMONDS: No further information has been released about the
        alleged 7,000-ct. "diamond" discovered in South Africa earlier
        this month, except that it remains unverified as a diamond.
        There is good news from the small kingdom of Lesotho, however,
        where the Letseng mine has yielded a 494-ct. diamond that is
        reportedly the 18th largest ever found. 

        The Letseng mine, reopened in 2003 by Gem Diamond Corp. of South
        Africa, does not produce much in total volume, but the stones it
        does produce are huge. The 603-ct. Lesotho Promise, found there
        in 2006, sold for $12.4 million to jeweler Laurence Graff at a
        special auction in the Antwerp Diamond Center. Over the course
        of six days in January 2007, miners recovered four major
        diamonds weighing 72, 76, 106 and 112 carats. A few weeks later,
        the mine yielded a 215-ct. diamond that sold at tender for $8.3
        million. 

        The grade at Letseng is only about 2 carats per hundred tons
        (cpht), compared with 140 cpht for an operation such as Jwaneng
        in Botswana. As Letseng is the world's lowest-grade operating
        kimberlite mine, its large (10.8+-ct.) diamonds account for
        three-quarters of its revenue. While the world average is $65
        per carat, Letseng's production averages an amazing $1,200 per
        carat. 

        MACRO: The National Retail Federation (NRF) forecasts a slower
        rate of spending as consumers in the U.S. respond to difficult
        economic conditions. The NRF, citing the ongoing problems in the
        housing and credit markets, said it expects retail sales to rise
        4% to $474.6 million during November and December, marking the
        slowest holiday sales growth since 2002. The NRF noted, however,
        that the luxury segment would show the strongest growth, as low-
        to middle-income consumers would be most affected by the
        economic slump. 

        The Conference Board, an economic research group, reported that
        consumer confidence took a precipitous drop in September. Its
        Consumer Confidence Index fell to 99.8 points, an almost
        six-point decline from the revised 105.6 points for August and
        well below the 104.5 points analysts had predicted. 

        The last time the Index fell below 100 was November 2005, after
        Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf
        Coast. 

        "Weaker business conditions, combined with a less favorable job
        market, continue to cast a cloud over consumers and heighten
        their sense of uncertainty and concern," said Lynn Franco,
        director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, in a
        press statement. "Looking ahead, little economic improvement is
        expected, and with the holiday season around the corner, this is
        not welcome news." 

        The Present Situation Index, which measures how consumers feel
        about the current economy, declined to 121.7 points from 130.1
        points in August. The Expectations Index, which measures their
        outlook over the next six months, declined to 85.2 points from
        89.2 points. 

        The Conference Board also reported in mid-September that its
        index of leading economic indicators dropped a sharp 0.6% in
        August, slightly higher than the 0.5% decline analysts were
        expecting. The Conference Board report is designed to forecast
        economic activity over the next three to six months. 

Russell Shor
Senior Industry Analyst
____________________________________________________________________
T h e   O r c h i d   L i s t
Open Electronic Forum for Jewelry Manufacturing Methods and Procedures
____________________________________________________________________
Orchid FAQ:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/faq.htm
Orchid Archives:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/archive
Orchid Galleries:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/gallery.htm
Invite a Friend:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm
____________________________________________________________________
Tips From The Jeweler's Bench - Article Archive
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm
The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography List
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/jewelry-books
Buy Orchid Jewelry:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/shop
____________________________________________________________________
-Unsubscribe:
-Email: orchid-request AT ganoksin.com Body=unsubscribe subject=blank
____________________________________________________________________