Mining Diamonds

Most diamonds are mined in about 20 countries around the world, including parts of Africa, Russia, and Canada.  The largest diamond mine, though, is located in Australia.  Of all of the diamonds mined, less than 50% have a good enough quality to be used in jewelry.  Because diamonds are formed within the earth, they are generally mined one of two ways:

1. Pipe mining is a type of diamond mining that involves removing diamonds from volcanic pipes.  While using this process, a very large area has to be mined.  This process works by extracting a large rock with diamonds from underground and separating the rock from the diamond in a screening plant.
2. Alluvial mining is a type of diamond mining that involves removing diamonds from rivers or oceans.  Diamonds can be found in these areas because thousands of years ago, diamonds were transported out of pipes via water.  This process involves using a wall to hold back the waves while the sand is dug up.  Then, the earth where the diamonds are located is extracted and separated at a screening plant.

Although most diamonds are mined in these ways, in some parts of the world, including the Craters of Diamond State Park in Arkansas, people can mine for their own diamonds and even keep what they find!  If you are interested in mining for diamonds, it is worth investigating.