As well protected as the American gold reserves, hundreds of thousands of seeds have been sheltered on an isolated island in the Arctic Circle. They represent samples of all the food crops on the planet and can be used to restart agricultural production in the event of a regional or global disaster.
Wheat, sorghum, salad, millet and many more !! A total of 100 million seeds from 100 different countries were deposited in a real safe located in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, 1000 km from the North Pole. Once wrapped in sheets specially created for this purpose and themselves enclosed in sealed boxes, the seeds will keep their germination capacity for hundreds of years. Some seeds can survive even more (provided they are kept in optimal conditions) barley for example holds 2000 years but the record is held by sorghum whose seed remains viable for almost 20 years.
The seeds are stored in three barricaded rooms placed at the end of a 125-meter tunnel dug in the mountains. The temperature is constant but a bit cool: -18 ° c. To maintain it, a single small compressor is sufficient, each box is also surrounded by permafrost (polar ice), which guarantees the viability of the seeds in the event of a power failure. On the security side, the measures are also drastic: steel doors, air locks, coded keys, motion detectors ... enough to compete with the biggest banks!
This safe, inaugurated on Tuesday 26 February, is intended to preserve the biodiversity of food crops which is currently experiencing a significant decrease. Half of the plants deposited are threatened. This green reserve constitutes a safeguard against the disappearance of the least exploited varieties. It will also be of great use in the event of a natural disaster and the destruction of agricultural resources. The countries that donated the seeds remain their owners and can recover and use them to restart food production. Other arrivals of seeds are expected, particularly from developing countries. In all, the structure's storage capacity is 4.5 million samples, or around 2 billion seeds !!!
Source: NOUVELOBS.COM | 27.02.2008/10/55 | XNUMX:XNUMX
Photo credit: AFP
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