NRC hands-off on blue topaz stock
December 07, 2007
By Michelle Graff
Rockville, Md.—The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said on Thursday it won't be taking any action regarding current inventories of blue topaz, putting to rest months of speculation over the fate of current supplies of the popular gemstone.
NRC spokesman David McIntyre told
National Jeweler that his agency is enacting a policy of "enforcement discretion" regarding blue topaz, which essentially means that it will remain hands-off about the stones that jewelers currently have in stock.
The gem has been the subject of scrutiny since the summer, when the NRC informed jewelers that since blue topaz is irradiated to produce its attractive blue color, only licensed companies can import and initially distribute the stones in the United States.
At that time, no U.S. companies were licensed to do so. The NRC announcement prompted some jewelers, including Stuller and Sterling, to voluntarily suspend sales of the stone, though the NRC issued no statement requiring them to do so.
Since then, two U.S. companies received licenses from the NRC to test blue topaz: Ideal Source Quality Assurance in
Columbia, Md., and HBM Virginia in Warrenton, Va. McIntyre said on Thursday that a third company also has become licensed, International Isotopes of Idaho.
Going forward, McIntyre said jewelers need to follow NRC guidelines regarding the stones; retailers should make sure the stones they are getting have been tested by one of the three NRC-licensed facilities and they should have the paperwork to prove it on hand.
Cecilia Gardner, president and CEO of the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC), said the JVC also is recommending that retailers provide purchasers with a warranty stating that the gemstone they are purchasing was imported and initially distributed by one of the NRC's licensees.
In addition, as of Nov. 30, NRC regulations regarding radioactive materials were extended to include accelerator-produced gems, such as aquamarine, yellow beryl, morganite and red tourmaline. Those stones, if irradiated, are now governed by the same guidelines as blue topaz, so stones purchased by jewelers in the future will also need to be tested by an NRC-licensed facility.
Editor's note: For earlier developments in this story, see
NRC issues distribution licenses for neutron-irradiated gems .
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