LETTERS TO THE EDITOR — `Sensationalizing’ diamond finds

I would hope that the timing of your lead story “Colored microdiamonds spur investor interest” (T.N.M., Nov. 23/92) will teach you a lesson or two about sensationalizing certain aspects of the recent diamond discoveries in the Northwest Territories.

I am referring to the inappropriate amount of ink your publication has been giving to the quality of the few stones found so far. While the quality of the stones in a producing mine is obviously important, at the early sampling stage it is almost meaningless.

Tens of thousands of stones must be evaluated from a given pipe before an average value can be determined. Even a 1,000-stone sample is far too small. There are a number of statistical reasons for this, but also to be considered is the fact that such a small sample will probably not include many of the large stones (weighing more than 10 carats) that make mining a kimberlite a paying proposition.

It is these few large stones that dramatically increase the average diamond value in a given pipe, and so an evaluation that does not properly estimate the proportion and quality of these cannot be considered accurate. The larger stones usually occur in a proportion of one to many thousand. The same reasoning goes for the fancy colored stones.

The fact that a company finds a certain percentage of “gem-quality” or “colored” stones in a small sample is about as meaningful as a speck of visible gold in a drill core.

It is partly for this reason that I disagree with your editorial “Disclosure on diamonds” (T.N.M., July 6/92), which demanded Dia Met release the results of an evaluation of its diamonds. It is most unlikely that the value of their small sample will reflect the average value for the pipe as a whole. Even the phrase “gem-quality microdiamond” is something of an oxymoron. To be considered gem quality, a number of conditions must occur. But the acid test is whether a stone can be cut to increase its value. Since a microdiamond cannot be cut to increase its value, it cannot be gem quality. Your readers presumably risk a lot of money if their investment is based upon what they read in your newspaper. You should be careful to put exploration results into perspective rather than jumping on the bandwagon for the sake of a few good headlines.

Kerry Knoll

President

Glencairn Explorations

Toronto