We have been lucky that when our family first started buying crystals nearly 40 years ago, it was Arizona minerals direct from the mines and dealer who bought from them. From there we built some great relationships with others around the world, many of whom we see year after year at gem shows. Many of the dealers we purchase from have been doing it a long time and we assume follow all their local laws regarding the mining process. If they didn’t they would probably go out of business very quickly. What is a bit scarier in the industry is the occasional truck that rolls up full of material- no business name, looking to seek questionable material. They are often carrying goods that were outright stolen from places like the petrified forest or from the mine claims of others, which is totally illegal. We don’t buy from people like that. Many countries don’t have the same labor or environmental laws as we do here and it can be difficult to know who to trust. (The same thing can be said about shoes, clothing, phones, computers, etc). We do our best to rely on what other miners and dealers tell us about these companies and use our best judgement in those cases. We really need more global, unified laws in these places, which seems to be changing for the better in recent years. We do our best to make sure the products we have are sourced in the best way possible with dealers we trust. We are thankful that many of our dealers go to the mines once a year to buy and see the process for themselves. We hope this helps and appreciate your business! Brightest Blessings