The De Beers Victor mine in Northern Ontario is a piece of an intricate global puzzle, from how diamonds are mined, how the provincial government calculates its take, to who is permitted to handle the stones.

Rita Celli had the rare opportunity to explore the Victor diamond mine north of Attiwapiskat, Ont. Here are her observations from that experience.

Ontario mining towns with rich gold and nickel deposits sit on billions in resources, but they feel poor and ignored.

Faced with opaque accounting and company secrecy, CBC-Michener investigative reporter Rita Celli studied government documents until she discovered exactly how much, or how little, was paid.

Ontario's only diamond mine is known for its exceptional quality stones, but the provincial government made more money on salt royalties in 2013-14 than on diamonds.

Canadian-owned oil, gas and mining companies must begin reporting next year all payments of more than $100,000 for government services, including port fees and royalties, beginning a new era of transparency in the mining sector.

Ontario has collected about 1.5 per cent in royalties on the billions of dollars worth of ore extracted in the province over the past decade, but that is far below the provincial governments estimate of five to 10 per cent.