The Doomsday Vault

 

This is the vault at the end of the world where all the existing seeds on the planet are kept. It is located in the Svalbard archipelago, Norway, about 1,300 kilometers from the North Pole. 

Opened in 2008, this underground warehouse is designed to preserve 4.5 million seeds of crop plants from around the world, acting as insurance against the loss of genetic biodiversity caused by natural disasters, conflict and climate change. 

Do we need biodiversity? Absolutely. In the last century, agricultural practices have shifted with modern techniques increasing crop yields, but also drastically reducing biodiversity. 

Today there are only 30 crops that account for 95% of the calories consumed by humans. Only 10% of the rice varieties grown in China in the 1950s are still cultivated today, and the United States has lost over 90% of its fruit and vegetable varieties since the early 20th century.

Svalbard’s isolation away from political and environmental threats, wars, rising sea levels, and other global risks and the permafrost acting as a natural freezer to help the artificial cooling systems inside, ensures seeds remain viable for extended periods.

The seeds kept there represent 13,000 years of agricultural history, ranging from modern hybrids to wild and ancient varieties. 

It is sometimes called The Doomsday Vault, though that sounds so damned depressing. More encouraging is the news that currently, the vault stores over 930,000 seed varieties in its carefully controlled subzero environment, ensuring their longevity for centuries. The facility stands as a testament to international cooperation, with deposits from nearly every country on Earth.

So, in case the world is ever destroyed and you are one of the only survivors, you know where to go.

crossposted from my One-Page Schoolhouse