"I expected a lot of rice and wheat (we have more than 150,000 distinct varieties of each). "Even though I have worked in this field for almost 40 years, I guess the biggest surprise was the breadth of diversity that came in from seedbanks around the world," said Fowler. These seeds were donated by almost every country in the world, so there is a massive variety of seeds represented in the Global Seed Vault. The vault currently holds more than 860,000 seed samples as of this writing. That equals a maximum of 2.5 billion seeds that can be stored in the Vault, according to Global Crop Diversity Trust, an international group that works in conjunction with the Norway government to manage the seeds in the vault. It is built to store a whopping 4.5 million varieties of crops, with each variety containing around 500 seeds. The Global Seed Vault can hold massive amounts of seeds. If that variety is in the Seed Vault, it's as safe as it can be." Capacity Today, fires, floods, natural disaster, war, human error, accidents, funding cuts - none of these need cause the extinction of a crop variety. In the past the loss of a variety meant extinction for that variety and any unique trait it might have contained. "If something happens to one of those facilities and if their seed samples are destroyed, then there is a backup copy in the Seed Vault. "The seeds in the Seed Vault are duplicate copies of collections held in national and other seedbanks around the world," said Fowler. The Global Seed Vault is specifically meant, though, to be an aid to other banks. The seed vault can protect these seeds for future generations. According to National Geographic, an estimated 90 percent of historic fruit and vegetable varieties in the United States have disappeared. The vault, and other vaults around the world, can be a way of preserving historical species of plants, as well. Think of the seeds as a collection of traits, or even more broadly as a collection of options our crops will have in the future, options such as disease and pest resistance, drought and heat tolerance, better nutrition, etc." So they are ultimately intended to serve plant breeders and other scientists who are involved in developing new crop varieties for farmers. "Their value and utility lies in their being a genetic resource in plant breeding. "The seeds are not meant for distribution to farmers or gardeners," said Fowler.
Though the vault is thought of as a "doomsday vault" that will be the source of seeds for the world after a worldwide disaster, that isn't really true. This process helps keep the metabolic activity in the seeds low, keeping them viable for long periods of time. These boxes are placed on shelves inside the vault where temperature and moisture levels are closely monitored. In addition to keeping the seeds at 0 F, the seeds are sealed in three-ply foil packages and then sealed inside boxes. If the electricity goes out or the refrigeration fails, the seeds will also still stay cold due to their location. It is also the farthest north that scheduled airline flights go, making it very remote.
We’ll also highlight powerful countries, ideologies, influential leaders, and ongoing global conflicts that are shaping the current landscape of the international community across the globe today.The site is also located in an area that is high up to prevent flooding it is geologically stable and the area has low humidity.
Each week we’ll be exploring current stories in international news, by examining the facts, providing historical context, and outlining the key players involved. NowThis World is dedicated to bringing you topical explainers about the world around you. NBC: ‘Doomsday’ Seed Vault Opens in ArcticīBC: Go Wild to Protect Food Security, Study Says The Guardian: The Doomsday Vault: the Seeds that Could Save a Post-apocalyptic World Inside The Arctic Doomsday Seed Vault For The First Time (360 Video)įor years now, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault has been collecting seeds in case a natural disaster or food crisis breaks out.
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