CALGARY – Canada Customs has issued a $2,500 fine after seizing a cache of rare gems and fossils at the border.
Lorne Michael Powell was fined $1,500 under the rarely used Cultural Property Export and Import Act and $1,000 Custom Act.
He was trying to illegally export ammolite, Alberta’s official gemstone, considered to be rarer than diamonds.
While ammonite fossils are found world-wide, the only place on earth where they turned into the gem ammolite is a tiny area near Standoff.
“On the same stone you can find every colour of the rainbow. Very bright, brighter than opal, even the best black opals. It is truly a jewel and a fluke of nature,” says Pierre Pare, who operates the largest ammolite mine in the world.
Powell was attempting to export $100,000 worth of ammolite gems to a trade show in Arizona without acquiring the proper permits. If Powell wishes to get the fossils back, he will be required to pay a civil penalty of $28,000 under the Customs Act.
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