The doomsday vault that keeps seeds for every type of agriculture mankind relies upon

[donnay]

Just in case we come a cropper: The doomsday vault that keeps seeds for every type of agriculture mankind relies upon should a disaster ever wipe them out

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway is home to more than two billion seeds
The seed bank can withstand a nuclear strike and aims to preserve crops in the face of natural disasters and war

Rare images of the food ark, which has 4.5 million varieties of seeds, were taken by photographer Jim Richardson

Vault was started by conservationist Cary Fowler from the Global Crop Diversity Trust and cost £4million to construct


By Tara Brady

These incredible images give a rare glimpse inside the 'Doomsday' seed vault which protects the world's food supply.


On an Arctic island off the coast of Norway lies the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which is home to more than two billion seeds.

The secure seed bank which can withstand a nuclear strike, aims to preserve crops in the face of climate change, war and natural disasters.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-relies-disaster-wipes-out.html#ixzz2j89LvrWT


Guess who helped fund this operation? Bill Gates

Flashback:

“Doomsday Seed Vault” in the Arctic -

Bill Gates, Rockefeller and the GMO giants know something we don’t
By F. William Engdahl
Global Research 4 December 2007

(...)

No project is more interesting at the moment than a curious project in one of the world’s most remote spots, Svalbard. Bill Gates is investing millions in a seed bank on the Barents Sea near the Arctic Ocean, some 1,100 kilometers from the North Pole. Svalbard is a barren piece of rock claimed by Norway and ceded in 1925 by international treaty (see map).

On this God-forsaken island Bill Gates is investing tens of his millions along with the Rockefeller Foundation, Monsanto Corporation, Syngenta Foundation and the Government of Norway, among others, in what is called the ‘doomsday seed bank.’ Officially the project is named the Svalbard Global Seed Vault on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen, part of the Svalbard island group.

Read more: http://www.globalresearch.ca/doomsday-seed-vault-in-the-arctic-2/23503

__________________________________

It's just interesting to see the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in the news today. The thing that the MSM forgot to mention was who sponsored and paid for this operation.

It's interesting to note that the very people who are pushing GMO's on all of us, have an heirloom seed vault out in a barren area. I think this news is a wake up call for anyone who does not have their own seeds saved.

 

[Acala]

Seems like a good idea to me.

 

[donnay]

Seems like a good idea to me.

Yeah, but I find it suspect, the people behind this seed vault. The very people who push GMO's as a way to feed the world.

 

[phill4paul]

If one were to corner the market on genetically mutated seeds wouldn't one want seeds of every type and variety?

 

[Zippyjuan]

The vault has nothing to do with GMO companies. It is funded and operated by the Norwegian government and a trust.

http://www.croptrust.org/content/svalbard-global-seed-vault

Svalbard Global Seed Vault Deep inside a mountain on a remote island in the Svalbard archipelago, halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, lies the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. It is a fail-safe, state-of-the-art seed storage facility, built to stand the test of time – and of natural or manmade disasters.

Permanent protection for the world’s food crops The purpose of the Vault is to store duplicates (‘back ups’) of all seed samples from the world’s crop collections. Permafrost and thick rock ensure that, even in the case of a power outage, the seed samples will remain frozen. The Vault can therefore be considered the ultimate insurance policy for the world’s food supply. It will secure, for centuries, millions of seeds representing every important crop variety available in the world today.

Scientists have long been alarmed by the loss of crop diversity and the vulnerability of the world’s seed collections. The idea of establishing a back-up seed facility in Svalbard dates back to the 1980s. However, it was only with the coming into force of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture in 2004, and with it an agreed international legal framework for conserving and accessing crop diversity, that the Vault became a practical possibility.

Managing the Vault The Seed Vault functions like a safety deposit box in a bank. The bank owns the building and the depositor owns the contents of his or her box. In the case of the Seed Vault, Norway owns the facility, and the depositing genebanks own the seeds they send to the Seed Vault; there is no transfer of ownership.

The Vault does not make material available to breeders, the way a conventional genebank would. Seeds are stored under what is known as “black box” arrangements, meaning that seed packages and boxes sent for storage will not be opened or sent to anyone except back to the original depositor in the event that they are required. The responsibility for testing material and for any subsequent regeneration and multiplication remains with the genebanks sending their seeds to Svalbard. No one has access to anyone else’s seeds.

The Vault is managed in partnership between the Trust, the Nordic Genetic Resource Center (NordGen) and the Government of Norway. The management system for the Vault was designed with the goal of ensuring the longevity of the seeds, minimizing risk, and minimizing cost. There are no permanent staff on-site, though staff from NordGen travel regularly to Svalbard to monitor the facility and process new shipments when they arrive. Local officials also monitor the facility using electronic surveillance.

Funding of the Vault Construction of the Vault was funded entirely by the Norwegian government. Since no staff are needed permanently on-site, the annual operating costs are as low as around $300,000, and these costs are shared between the Trust and the Norwegian government. If thought of as an annual insurance premium for the world's food supply, this represents astonishing value.

The Trust is also assisting developing countries with preparing, packaging and transporting samples of unique accessions from their genebanks to the Arctic, and the Trust is financing the deposit of samples from the international collections of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).

The Role of the Global Crop Diversity Trust The Trust sees the Svalbard Global Seed Vault as an essential element of a rational and secure global system for the conservation of crop diversity – after all, every good system needs a back-up.

The Trust supports the conservation of crop diversity in genebanks worldwide. As an extra layer of security, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault stores a backup of these valuable seed collections.

The Trust is committed to supporting the ongoing operational costs of the Vault, and is assisting developing countries with preparing, packaging and transporting samples of unique accessions from their genebanks to the Arctic.

 

[Dr.3D]

Won't do much good to have seeds that grow if they can be cross pollinated by something that will make the next generation of seed sterile.

 

[donnay]

The vault has nothing to do with GMO companies. It is funded and operated by the Norwegian government and a trust.

http://www.croptrust.org/content/svalbard-global-seed-vault

From Wiki:

The Global Crop Diversity Trust (GCDT) has played a key role in the planning of the seed vault and is coordinating shipments of seed samples to the Vault in conjunction with the Nordic Genetic Resource Center. The Trust will provide most of the annual operating costs for the facility, and has set aside endowment funds to do so, while the Norwegian government will finance upkeep of the structure itself. With support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other donors, the GCDT is assisting selected genebanks in developing countries as well as the international agricultural research centers in packaging and shipping seeds to the seed vault. An International Advisory Council is being established to provide guidance and advice. It will include representatives from the FAO, the CGIAR, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources and other institutions.

Norway to cooperate with Bill Gates on biological diversity

Norway is to cooperate with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on an initiative to rescue 95% of the biological diversity of the world’s food crops. In Norway, the construction of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault is already under way. This will be used to store material from national and international gene banks.


“Cooperation with the Gates Foundation will be a very important means of safeguarding future food production throughout the world,” said Minister of International Development Erik Solheim.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is allocating NOK 50 million in matching funds over a two-year period to an initiative to safeguard the biological diversity of 21 of the world’s most critical food crops. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is providing som NOK 200 million (USD 30 million) to this initiative organised by the Global Crop Diversity Trust.

The grants from Norway and the Gates Foundation will be used partly to enable developing countries to send seeds to the Global Seed Vault in Svalbard.

“I am very pleased that Norway is contributing to the largest single grant ever made to conserve the global biological diversity of food crops. This means that the costs of the developing countries’ use of the Global Seed Vault in Svalbard are guaranteed for the foreseeable future,” said Mr Solheim.

The Seed Vault will serve as a global safety net for food crops whose seeds are already stored in international gene banks. In a number of places these gene banks are vulnerable because of inadequate maintenance capacity, natural disasters or conflicts. Developing countries will be given an opportunity to deposit back-up samples of their seed collections in the Svalbard vault. Because of the climatic conditions in Svalbard, the seeds will survive and retain the ability to germinate for many decades. The funding that has now been secured will make it possible to deposit at least 450 000 distinct seed samples in the Svalbard vault.

“This initiative will rescue the most globally important developing-country collections of the world’s 21 most important food crops,” said Cary Fowler, Director of the Trust. “It will secure at-risk collections in poor countries and document their astonishing diversity, making it available to meet the food needs of the poor.”

The Trust was founded by the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation and Bioversity International for the purpose of conserving the biological diversity of food crops in developing countries.

http://www.norway.org/ARCHIVE/policy/environment/seedvault/#.UnAMx4nD_mQ

 

[jkr]

id be happy w/ bullet proof glass and a cistern...

 

[Zippyjuan]

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is not a GMO company.

The vault has nothing to do with GMO companies. It is funded and operated by the Norwegian government and a trust.

http://www.croptrust.org/content/svalbard-global-seed-vault

http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/lm...ult/frequently-asked-questions.html?id=462221

Will GMO-seeds be stored at the SGSV?
Import and storage of GMO seeds according to Norwegian legislation will require advance approval. Certain other criteria will apply to "sealed internal use" for research purposes and indoor storage of GMO, for example with regard to the risk of spreading GMO.

Norwegian genetechnology legislation was formulated before the Svalbard Global Seed Vault (SGSV) was set up, and therefore fails to take into account the vault's special status, or the low risk related to handling seeds in sealed packaging. Until changes can be made to the rules or exemptions can be provided from them, long-term storage of GMO seeds in the SGSV will not be approved.

 

[donnay]

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is not a GMO company.



http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/lm...ult/frequently-asked-questions.html?id=462221

I didn't say GMO's were going to be stored at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault.

 

[Zippyjuan]

No you didn't but I didn't say you did either. Thanks though. I included the info to help show that GMO people are not involved with it.

Yeah, but I find it suspect, the people behind this seed vault. The very people who push GMO's as a way to feed the world.

 

[eduardo89]

The very people who push GMO's as a way to feed the world.

If we can create corn and rice strains that require less water, can be spaced closer together, don't deplete soil as quickly, are pest and disease resistant, and have higher nutritional content, then yes, GMO's definitely can help alleviate world hunger problems by producing more nutritional food at lower prices.

 

[Natural Citizen]

If we can create corn and rice strains that require less water, can be spaced closer together, don't deplete soil as quickly, are pest and disease resistant, and have higher nutritional content, then yes, GMO's definitely can help alleviate world hunger problems by producing more nutritional food at lower prices.

Of course, If a frog had wings then he wouldn't bump his ass on the rocks. So then we have to prove all of this. And prove it based upon genuine, uncompromised science. Science that places survival into the equation and aspects of gene modification that contradict life. Not this brand of "Big Science"... http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?431829-Big-Science-Evolution-of-Public-Consumption that functions on growth alone.

 

[donnay]

No you didn't but I didn't say you did either. Thanks though. I included the info to help show that GMO people are not involved with it.

Nice try Zippy. Bill Gates is one of the people pushing GMO's for global hunger.


ETA:

 

[donnay]

If we can create corn and rice strains that require less water, can be spaced closer together, don't deplete soil as quickly, are pest and disease resistant, and have higher nutritional content, then yes, GMO's definitely can help alleviate world hunger problems by producing more nutritional food at lower prices.

God created all things, we are just his servants--in that order. That being said, these people who are monkeying around with God's process cannot be doing anything that is good. The starvation that is going around the world has been provided by the government's hand, not the people.

GMO's pose no nutritional benefit whatsoever, and in independent studies, GMO's are proving more harm then good.