The entrance tunnel to the “World Seed Bank” was flooded. An alarming phenomenon, due to global warming.
Modern man is far-sighted. If a catastrophe hit the planet, if the fruits, vegetables, plants, flowers were to disappear, there would still be a solution, because he foresaw the blow. In Norway, in an underground vault, lie thousands of frozen seeds. All the agricultural heritage of the Earth, its biodiversity, the immense diversity of its food crops are preserved there, in the frozen basements of the island of Spitsbergen.
But Man did not anticipate everything. Global warming, snowmelt, soaring temperatures… How could he have imagined that this phenomenon could harm the precious “seed bank” he built 120 meters deep, in the side of a sandstone mountain?
Infiltrations
And yet, this treasure now seems threatened. Flood occurred in entrance to bedroom, newspaper reveals The Guardian. Water, from the snow melt, seeped into the tunnel – luckily, without reaching the heart of the vault. The seeds are intact.
But the level of concern is high. Never has it been so hot in the world as in 2016. It is the first time, since measuring tools have been in existence, that the planetary thermometer has displayed such temperatures. The Arctic is no exception to the rule and is suffering the brunt of global warming.
The heat has melted the permafrost (or permafrost), that sub-layer of the soil found in high latitudes and altitudes, and whose temperature remains below zero degrees, making it impermeable. Theoretically, in any case …
Permafrost disappearance
“Our plans did not foresee that the permafrost would disappear and that we could reach such high temperatures”, explained Hege Njaa Aschim, spokesman for the Norwegian government, quoted by the Guardian.
The Norwegian authorities have implemented measures to prevent infiltration. A waterproof wall will be built to add additional protection. “Anything that can be a source of heat will also be removed from the warehouse,” added Hege Njaa Aschim.
The World Seed Bank is not ten years old: it was inaugurated in 2008. The warehouse has also been nicknamed the “Doomsday Vault”.
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