Sarine’s David Block: Diamond Industry at Standstill Until Chinese Demand Returns

David Block is CEO of Israel’s Sarine Technologies and has served in the position since 2012. In this exclusive interview for Rough and Polished, Block gives his opinion on the leading issues affecting today’s diamond trade.

11 september 2024

Dr M'zée Fula Ngenge: Demand for considerable-sized diamonds stronger than ever

The African Diamond Council (ADC) chairperson Dr M'zée Fula Ngenge told Rough & Polished’s Mathew Nyaungwa in an exclusive interview that although overall global diamond prices have been somewhat soft, the demand for considerable-sized diamonds...

02 september 2024

Amplats sees prospects as a standalone company

Anglo has revealed its plans to demerge Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), which has operations in South Africa and Zimbabwe, to optimise shareholder value. Rough&Polished contacted Amplats to comment on this and other issues but was referred...

19 august 2024

WFDB President Yoram Dvash Remains Confident Despite Global Diamond Challenges

Yoram Dvash is President of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) having been elected in 2020. He found time in his busy schedule to speak to Rough&Polished about the state of the diamond industry around the world and some of the major...

12 august 2024

Lyudmila Vysotskaya: Amber is a mystical stone, a living substance

Lyudmila Vysotskaya is a Kaliningrad-based amber artist and designer, expert, chairwoman of the Amber Academy and member of the Creative Union of Artists in Decorative and Applied Arts. This summer, visitors could admire the art works by Lyudmila Vysotskaya...

30 july 2024

Concentration of pollutants in some regions of Russia exceed the norm by 10 times

29 july 2024

Concentration of harmful substances in the air in some Russian cities exceeds the permissible norms by ten times, among them are Abakan, Achinsk, Bratsk, Vikhorevka, Zima, Kansk, Kemerovo and Krasnoyarsk.

According to 2023 data from Roshydromet, in 30 cities of Russia, concentrations of certain pollutants exceeded norm by ten or more times. Among the cities with an excess concentration of benzapyrene are Abakan, Achinsk, Bratsk, Vikhorevka, Zima, Kansk, Kemerovo and Krasnoyarsk. Excess concentrations of hydrogen sulfide were noted in Almetyevsk, Chita, Samara, Selenginsk and Novodvinsk, and sulfur dioxide in Norilsk and Mednogorsk.

In general, the average annual concentrations of formaldehyde have increased by 5% over the past five years, and formaldehyde emissions from stationary sources increased by 17% from 2019 to 2023.

At the same time, the average annual concentrations of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and nitric oxide have not changed, carbon monoxide concentrations have decreased by 21%, and benzapyrene concentrations have decreased by 24%, TASS reports.

Alex Shishlo, Editor in Chief of the European Bureau, Rough&Polished