In her article, Kinnarinen tells us of a remote seed bank located in the depths of Svalbard's mountains. The Global Seed Vault, which is also the station's official name, is not an ordinary seed bank: it is a reserve stockpile. At least 200 million seeds have already been stored in Svalbard's bank, which equals about one tenth of the bank's actual storage capacity.
The project is funded mainly by the Norwegian government and the Nordic seed bank, NordGen. The idea of the project is to store the seeds of important agricultural plants as a certain type of "backup" for the years to come.
In fact there are at least 1500 seed banks of similar fashion located around the world. They may, however, not prove as reliable as needed, because most of them are located in developing countries or areas that are vulnerable to natural disasters. Svalbard, on the other hand, is ideal for this purpose, being geologically stable and yet easily reachable.
Many of the stored species can survive for centuries when properly packed and frozen. Even ordinary plants, such as wheat and rice, can remain in good shape for well over a thousand years.
In my opinion, it is indeed a respectable idea to prepare for a future that may not always look as bright as we wish. Thinking of the following generations indicates a great love for nature, as well as an interest in sustainable development.
©Juho
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