![]() READ: Syrian war forces first ‘Doomsday Vault’ withdrawalĪn important storehouse in the Fertile Crescent The seeds are being planted at new facilities in Lebanon and Morocco, allowing scientists to resume the important research they’ve been doing for decades, away from the barrel bombs of Aleppo. Now, with no sign of conditions in Syria improving, scientists have begun recovering their critical inventory of seeds, sourced from around the Fertile Crescent and beyond, that have been in safekeeping beneath the Arctic ice. The bloody conflict in Syria has left scientists at an important gene bank in Aleppo – where new strains of drought- and heat-resistant wheat have been developed over time – unable to continue their work in recent years. Rather, it was the most preventable of man-made disasters – war. Known as the “Doomsday Vault,” this seed bank – operated by the Norwegian government and containing a seed of just about every known crop in the world – is meant to be humanity’s backup in the event of a catastrophe that devastates crops.īut it was not a natural disaster that has caused scientists to have to dip in and make the first significant withdrawal from the vault. But, somewhat ironically, there are some estimates that the warehouse may be vulnerable to melting permafrost caused by the climate crisis.Humanity has had to cash in on its insurance policy earlier than expected.ĭeep in the side of a mountain in the Arctic archipelago is the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. ![]() In other words, seeds around the world are preserved as a solid backup for gene banks in the event of a disaster, whether from mismanagement and funding cuts, or war and climate change. It does this by providing “long-term storage of seed copies from all gene banks and countries involved in the collective effort of the global community to ensure the world’s future food supply,” according to its website. The primary mission of this repository is to preserve plant genetic diversity to ensure the Earth’s future food supply. Also, this island is well insulated from the dangers of human activities and well connected to transport routes and infrastructure. One of the reasons the warehouse is located so far away is the naturally cold weather of Svalbard. Samples are stored at -18☌ to delay aging as much as possible. While the vast majority of seeds consist of commonly eaten grains such as rice and wheat, thousands of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and other plant specimens, including hemp and opium, are also in storage. Located on the slope of a snow-covered hill, the warehouse currently contains more than 1.1 million seed varieties from almost every country in the world. THERE ARE MORE THAN 1.1 MILLION TYPES OF SEEDS ![]() You can tour the warehouse via link below: The repository, built by the Norwegian Ministry of Food and Agriculture in conjunction with the regional gene bank NordGen and the Crop Trust, is located on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen, in the remote Arctic Svalbard archipelago. There’s also a wealth of informational texts and audio guides to keep you informed. Users can tour the outside and inside of the warehouse as if they were on a tour. You can participate in this experience for free and without any registration. ![]() The online experience was launched by Virtual Tour Company earlier this month as part of the 15th anniversary of the seed store opening. A new online service allows you to virtually visit the Svalbard Global Seed Warehouse, known as the Doomsday Vault.Ī new virtual reality (VR) experience is inside the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, known as the “Doomsday Vault”, a sanctuary built in the Arctic to protect Earth’s seeds from disaster and environmental destruction. ![]()
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