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Show Tuesday, February 28, 1995 THE DAILY HERALD, Provo, Utah, - Page A7 Australia's opal miners try to break into world gem market By GEOFF SPENCER Associated Press Writer "It's difficult for miners to get fair prices for LIGHTNING RIDGE, AustralThe police car rolled onto a dusty outback airstrip, and two armed officers quickly escorted a courier and his bag to a chartered plane. He carried the final consignment of a dazzling $4.5 million shipment of opals to be auctioned Monday in Hong Kong. After years of depressed sales d and often deals with ia ; one-side- miners middlemen, the small-tim- e of Lightning Ridge are taking their multicolored gems direct to the world market for the first time. "This is hard, dirty work. We want the best price we can get," said Frank Palmer, chipping at a rock face 50 feet down a vertical soaft. The cavity is just big enough for him to stand upright. Hundreds more mines and shafts honeycomb the area. On the surface, piles of dug up white clay and sandstone contrast with the natural red earth that shimmers in the ; 100-pl- us heat. Australia produces almost 95 percent of the world's opals. And Lightning Ridge is home to the most precious variety: the black opal. The name describes the stone's dark background that highlights a spectacular spectrum of cplor, ; No opal is the same and the best are christened with flashy names like "Serpent," "Kaleidoscope," "Jupiter" and "Blushing Bride." Hues of blue, green, yellow, orange, scarlet and purple are valua- i have expensive stones. Some simply hidden them away for years waiting for the right opportunity to sell." John Leftwich, auctioneer old-time- ble. But those with red flashes are the most sought after. The flamboyant beauty of the gems seems at odds with the heat, dust, flies and mystery that pervades this frontier town 500 miles northwest of Sydney. The law limits opal mining claims to 540 square feet and they can be worked only by single prospectors or small partnerships. The restrictions have kept large companies away and brought a strong streak of individualism dating back to when mining began in 1902. Red tape and regulations are regularly ignored or flouted. Frustrated officials erected a highway sign "Lightning Ridge. Population ?" at die town's entrance after secretive residents refused to talk to census takers. Officially 2,000 people are registered as voters. However, the local post office says it handles mail for more than 7,000. The population fluctuates as fortune hunters come and go. More than half are immigrants hoping to strike it rich quick. Others have run away from murky pasts. Tourists are welcome but nosy outsiders are treated with caution. rs "If a stranger arrives in town in a suit and tie, no one will talk to him, in case he's from taxation office," said Palmer's wife and long time business partner, Viv. Tons of dirt and rock must be dug out, washed and sifted by hand to find a single opal. Once cut and polished, a gem may be reduced to less than the size of half a finger nail. vJmJ mv" for ' if Estimates of opal production vary between $40 million and $150 million a year. No one is really sure how many opals are dug up because miners keep quiet. Secrecy is a security measure against the tax man and the occasional armed hold up. But the greatest problem are "ratters" miners who sneak into someone else' shaft and dig out a vein of opal. "You must always lock up the entrance of your mine. Sometimes you have to camp outside to make sure," said Edmund Lahoud, 36, who came to Australia as a teenager to escape civil war in his native Lebanon. As loners, many miners have struggled to get good prices for their gems. Most have sold to big APjPtlOtO tons of dirt and rock must be dug out, washed and sifted by hand to find a single opal. But this, doesn't discourage most opal miners. Opal miner Frank Palmer, left, sifts through rocks with his partner Edmund Lahoud as they look for opals in Lightning Ridge, Australia. Usually, many city dealers who are infamous in being offered at this sale," said .uuifiwuiwioLiiugiuwand prices from desperate auctioneer John Leftwich. "Its difficult for miners to get fair diggers then selling for hefty profits. "Only the very best stones are prices for expensive stones. Some "ll-timer- have s -- them away for years waiting 'for ther Bhtonnortunitvtnsell Hong Kong was chosen because of the grow ing popularity of opahs' : amongAsians. imply hidden Study adds to concern of pesticide cancer risk . By LAURAN NEERGAARD Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - Experts say parents shouldn't overreact to a small study that found a fourfold cancer risk among some children whose yards were treated with herbicides. But the study, published in today's American Journal of Public Health, does add to growing concern that home pesticide use may be associated with some cancers. "It's an interesting study," said Dr. Clark Heath of the American Cancer Society, who urged better research to settle the question. "But people shouldn't draw conclusions from it." About 8,000 U.S. children get cancer each year, and 1 ,600 die but the causes of childhood cancer are largely unknown. Bob and Evelyn without Planned Savings Plus. i The study by University of North Carolina researchers compared pesticide use in the homes of 252 Denver children diagnosed with cancer between 1976 and 1983 with those of 222 healthy children with similar demographic characteristics. i : i i i .. i j Parents were asked whether their homes received professional extermination; any yard herbicide or insecticide use, professional or and any use of hanging that emit bug poison into strips pest the air. i Children, from birth to age 14, vhose yards were treated had four times the risk of soft tissue sarcomas, malignant tumors of the connective tissue, as their healthy counterparts, said study author Jack Leiss, now with North Carolina's Center for Health Statistics. (I pregnancy had three times the risk of leukemia. Children exposed after birth had twice the risk. possibly faulty memories. Still, "it shows there may be a public health problem here," Leiss said. "Home pesticides are widely used, and the little bit of scientific evidence there is shows children have a large measure of exposure. ' ' MU - ! i ' ' ( ifols Bob and Evelyn with Planned Savings Plus. Professional home extermination caused a slightly increased risk, between 1.6 and 1.8 times, of lymphomas. . Leiss emphasized that the study ; I 'I Fetuses exposed to home pest strips during the last three months of doesn't prove a connection to any chemicals. It didn't measure specific exposures and relied on parents' : I Planned Savings Plus Rates Anitu.i Pfnoil.Ur First Security's Planned Savings Plus is a disciplined savings plan that regularly shifts money from your checking -i- i account to your savings, l ncn, as your assets build, wc increase the interest (up to 5.09 APY). Which never hurts for . 3.75 3.80 4.00 4.06 $5,000 to $49,999 4. 5 $50,000 to $99,999 4.25 5.00 $100,000 and up 4.22 Up to $999 $1,000 to $4,999 1 4.32 5.09 r a rainy day. For more information, stop into your bcal First security branch. MM IMb A The study is similar to a handful of others that have suggested possi- ble cancer links, but nothing is clusive, Heath emphasized. cont Ichmary 31, W5, ami mav ihaiiKc ai anv time, mkIikImih a!n-- ihc .ucoum is opi'm il iMi minimum I ilisdosi-annual obtain tL irsi Siiiinty iluikinK ' count balame tT()uinrd Musi maintain I balance ol $ KM) id reduce the licsnmld to is rc(uind nl transfer at (torn least $2 savings andmomlily eainmp on tin- .mount Rjto acmraic ts ol opi-mii- . pirn-nt.iK- So parents should take common-sens- e precautions: Hide pesticide containers and don't let children play on lie said. just-spray- lawns or floors, yu-ld- ! : i |