Above the Arctic Circle between Norway and the North Pole lies a facility of vital importance for the future of humanity where seeds are stored.
Millions of seed samples from over 930.000 crop species are housed in the Global Seed Vault in Svalbard (Svalbard Global Seed Vault), part of the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard.
The vault began operating in 2008, serving as an ultimate refuge and gene bank for plants protected from disasters, wars, diseases, and climate change.
For the first time, a shipment from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) arrived at the vault on February 27th.
The vault was established by agriculturalist Cary Fowler from the Global Crop Diversity Trust. It took 9.1 million dollars to build.
Since its opening, it has been receiving seed samples from all over the world.
The ice surrounding the facility helps maintain low temperatures in case of a power outage.
The “Doomsday” vault is built to withstand earthquakes or nuclear strikes.
Duplicate collections of seeds are stored in this repository, and access can only be granted if the original collections are lost.
In chambers that open only three times a year to limit exposure of seeds to the outside world, the temperature is around minus 18 degrees Celsius.
The seeds are placed in sealed envelopes, and inserted into plastic containers on metal shelves.
Low temperatures and limited oxygen reserves prevent the aging of seeds.
In a statement from Crop Trust, a non-profit organization that manages this facility with the Norwegian authorities, it was reported that on February 27th, 2024, plant seeds were delivered by 23 seed banks, nine of which did so for the first time, marking the largest number of new partners in one day since the vault was established.
Among the new partners are seed banks from BiH, Cameroon, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Zambia.
The current shipment included crop seeds such as beans, barley, corn, rice, millet, and sorghum.
With the latest shipments, 111 seed banks from 77 countries are stored in Svalbard, according to the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
Fuad Gasi, a professor at the Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences of the University of Sarajevo (UNSA) and one of the project implementers, stated that the vault in Svalbard received “unique material” from BiH.
This vault, which receives samples from all over the world, played a crucial role between 2015 and 2019 in restoring seed collections damaged during the war in Syria.
“The preservation of genetic diversity in this Arctic stronghold ensures the adaptability and resilience of our crops, guaranteeing food security for generations to come,” said Stefan Schmitz, Executive Director of Crop Trust.
Many seed shipments that arrived at the vault on February 27th of this year are the result of an international 10-year biodiversity project known as BOLD, designed to enhance global food security and nutrition, Crop Trust notes, Slobodna Evropa reports.
E.Dz.
Photo: Wikipedia
