Doomsday Vault

Doomsday vault to avert world famine

WITHIN a large concrete room, hewn out of a mountain on a freezing-cold island just 1000 kilometres from the North Pole, could lie the future of humanity.

The room is a "doomsday vault" designed to hold around 2 million seeds, representing all known varieties of the world's crops. It is being built to safeguard the world's food supply against nuclear war, climate change, terrorism, rising sea levels, earthquakes and the ensuing collapse of electricity supplies. "If the worst came to the worst, this would allow the world to reconstruct agriculture on this planet," says Cary Fowler, director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, an independent international organisation promoting the project.

New Scientist has learned that the Norwegian government is planning to create the seed bank next year at the behest of crop scientists. The $3 million vault will be built deep inside a sandstone mountain lined with permafrost on the Norwegian Arctic island of Spitsbergen. The vault will have metre-thick walls of reinforced concrete and will be protected behind two airlocks and high-security blast-proof doors. It will not be permanently manned, but "the mountains are patrolled by polar bears", says Fowler.

When I first read this article, I thought "great, at least someone is thinking," ....but then I had to put on my ATS conspiracy hat...

The article continues:

The vault's seed collection, made up of duplicates of those already held at other seed banks, will represent the products of some 10,000 years of plant breeding by the world's farmers. Though most are no longer widely planted, the varieties contain vital genetic traits still regularly used in plant breeding.

To survive, the seeds need freezing temperatures. Operators plan to replace the air inside the vault each winter, when temperatures in Spitsbergen are around -18 °C. But even if some catastrophe meant that the vault was abandoned, the permafrost would keep the seeds viable. And even accelerated global warming would take many decades to penetrate the mountain vault.

"This will be the world's most secure gene bank by some orders of magnitude," says Fowler. "But its seeds will only be used when all other samples have gone for some reason. It is a fail-safe depository, rather than a conventional seed bank."

This seems like an awful lot of effort, don't ya think?

Who is this Global Crop Diversity Trust? I did some quick research and here is what I found:

The Global Crop Diversity Trust

The Global Crop Diversity Trust aims to match the long term nature of conservation needs with long term secure and sustainable funding. At its centre will be an endowment that will provide a permanent source of funding for crop diversity collections around the world.

Huh? What does that mean? They have PERMANENT funding? If I'm reading that right, someone is certainly taking this project very seriously...(NWO proponents, I'm sure you have something to say... )

The site continues:

The campaign to establish the Trust has involved an historic partnership of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the 15 Future Harvest Centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). It is an ambitious and unprecedented response to global development priorities, addressing two of the Millennium Development Goals (Goal 1—to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger and Goal 7—to ensure environmental sustainability). It also directly addresses the priority of the G8 Action Plan on Science and Development to support efforts to ensure funding for crop diversity conservation. The campaign was launched at the World Summit for Sustainable Development in 2002 where it was recognized as a Type 2 initiative (Public-Private Partnership) to strengthen the implementation of Agenda 21. The Trust has been welcomed by both the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and the FAO Commission on Plant Genetic resources for Food and Agriculture. The framework for the Global Crop Diversity Trust is provided by the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, which will enter into force on 1 July 2004. The Trust will serve as an element of the funding strategy of the International Treaty. The technical framework for the Trust is provided by the Global Plan of Action. The Global Plan gives priority to the development of an efficient and effective system of ex situ conservation, and the development and strengthening of cooperation among national programmes and international institutions to sustain ex situ collections.

There is a lot to research in that paragraph! Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I think it rather important to understand who is building a Noah's Ark, and why, in today's world. Don't you?

How would it operate, if there ever were a need for it???

Fascinating subject!


[edit on 12-1-2006 by loam]

It is an ambitious and unprecedented response to global development priorities, addressing two of the Millennium Development Goals (Goal 1—to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger and Goal 7—to ensure environmental sustainability). It also directly addresses the priority of the G8 Action Plan on Science and Development to support efforts to ensure funding for crop diversity conservation.

Ok, ok. Maybe i'm not thinking hard enough, but it really doesn't make good sense to me??? I mean, sure it sounds good and probably looks real good on paper, but if we had a nuclear fallout or global warming goes to the extremes, where do they expect to plant these crops? Are they also going to build a secure place where they are storing the seeds with artificial lighting and sprinkler systems, etc? I'm a farm girl and common sense tells me that if it's too cold (nuclear winter) or too hot (global warming)...ummm well crops just won't grow in that type of environment.

I'm off to do some more research on this, but you're right Loam...they are trying awfully hard.

Originally posted by zenlover28
...they are trying awfully hard.

That is exactly my point. Why the sense of urgency? The others you raise are very good too...

In a catastrophe, this would be a plan for only some of mankind.

Who gets to make the decision about how the seed bank works and under what rules???

I think that is worth investigating.

[edit on 12-1-2006 by loam]

Well, would it not be the Norwegian government in charge? Or did I miss something?

And they certainly seem to be worried about our futures, but they need to think the whole thing through. I don't think they've done that and if they have well, then the article certainly doesn't explain it.

Are they going to share the secret passcode to get into this vault with the entire world? What guarantees the priviledged few who has this information will survive whatever calamity the future holds? If it's a vault built to stand the test of time...how could anyone possibly break in it?

It just sounds very poorly thought out to me.

Originally posted by zenlover28
It just sounds very poorly thought out to me.

Or maybe there is a precise answer to all of those questions.

Who is asking?

I wonder if they are trying to do a "Genesis Project" .
This type of scenario of "replanting / reseeding" the world as been around for decades. That someone is actually dumping the monies into this is the part that I find interesting. What do they know that we don't? Or are they planning something?

Originally posted by loam

Who is asking?

Lost me on that one.

Perhaps there are precise answers to the questions. Perhaps they know something we don't.

Originally posted by zenlover28

Originally posted by loam

Who is asking?

Lost me on that one.

I'm sorry zenlover, it wasn't very clear.

I meant, *IS* anyone asking those questions? I assume someone has. It's hard to visualize people parting with their money without having asked those questions first. Whatever they heard was enough to fund away...

Of course, I am only speculating here....but I have an odd feeling about this one.

This sounds useless to me. With all the protection, no one would be able to get to it, if it was needed. What if the person or persons who knew how to open it died in these catastrophies? Then all that work for nothing. Besides, why have all that security? Seriously, why would some one want to rob a seed bank? This all makes no sence what so ever.

Well Loam, one would have to come to the conclusion that in order for them to properly plan this out that they would have to know something we don't. Otherwise, their well thought out plan wouldn't work. Would you not agree?

Originally posted by zenlover28
Well Loam, one would have to come to the conclusion that in order for them to properly plan this out that they would have to know something we don't. Otherwise, their well thought out plan wouldn't work. Would you not agree?

Yes. I would agree.

That's what bugs me. People don't fund plans that don't make sense.

Ok then, so let's get to the bottom of it. I have a long weekend coming up; but i'll do some research; make a few calls; send some emails. I'll get back with my findings and you do the same and whoever else wishes to participate. Have a nice weekend everyone!

Originally posted by loam

Originally posted by zenlover28
Well Loam, one would have to come to the conclusion that in order for them to properly plan this out that they would have to know something we don't. Otherwise, their well thought out plan wouldn't work. Would you not agree?

Yes. I would agree.

That's what bugs me. People don't fund plans that don't make sense.

Uhh yes they do all the time. Star Wars. The Spruce Goose. Planning to win a Nuclear War. You know things like that.

Allthough I don't think this is one of them.

There are alot of risks staring our incredibly stupid(or stubborn) species right in the face. We need to concentrate on making our species immune to nearly all risks and that will be a huge undertaking but it is really the only worthwhile endevor IMO. Efforts must be made in 4 key area's. Oceanic Colonization, Subterrainian/Underwater Agriculture, Clean Energy generation, and Space Colonization(this is still up in the air as we could distroy ourselves(or be distroyed by a natural event) before we get to this point which is why we need to do this with some urgency).

Gene banks of every species that we know of on the planet should be created(and are being created now as we speak I believe), many many of them should be created along with many many seed banks. In the worst case scenario I don't care who has access to this as I would at least want some of our species to survive. It would be great and all if we could save as many as possible but that may not be possible depending on the catastrophy.

Maybe eventually we will start to create Cryo-stasis banks so if we should get blindsided then the people who happen to be in the pods at the time(they should be rotated frequently and only people who would be necessary to rebuild) will be safe say under miles of rock or water(and added shielding to boot) or even in orbit.

It may seem like overkill, but it isn't we are vulnerable in the cradle and until we start to expand into the galaxy we will be at risk.

Well enough of my ramblings, my thumbs are on this project and hope many more will be created.

Originally posted by sardion2000
Uhh yes they do all the time. Star Wars. The Spruce Goose. Planning to win a Nuclear War. You know things like that.

That is the problem with stating absolutes. Of course, I think you know what I meant.

How does anyone get "permanent" funding? What *IS* permanent funding? I find that a very strange term...

loam

I think it rather important to understand who is building a Noah's Ark, and why, in today's world.

Key questions.

FYI - Others apparently are doing the same thing - mainly banking DNA. The main difference with this project is that they are using seeds - and heritage seeds at that, perhaps unpatented?

...One factor that's being addressed in this project if not the copy - most lifeforms now are patented, and most DNA is privately owned.

...Too much here to think about all at once. Will sleep on it and come back tomorrow.

Another great post loam. Thanks.

Originally posted by soficrow
most lifeforms now are patented, and most DNA is privately owned.

...Too much here to think about all at once. Will sleep on it and come back tomorrow.

Another great topic. Can't wait to see your thread.

What reason is there NOT to try hard? If trillions of dollars are spent every year on weapons that will eventually destroy the world, what is a few million to preserve and defend against that?

VERY interesting article. The countries of the world are invited
to store crop seeds in a doomsday vault in Norway. I find this
interesting. What, if anything, do the people running this
vault know? Any NWO connections? Any religious connections?
This kinda reminds me of the Noah's Ark story in the bible - an
ark to save crop seeds for after the world is in meteorological
termoil.

My questions - if the world is in such bad shape that the countries
crops have been wiped out, massive starvation and world
famine as well as world wars (which we know would happen
in such an instance) ... how would the survivors in each of
the countries get to Norway to get the seeds and distribute
them to the people of each of their countries? If the world
does spiral down to that situation, then the strongest country
to take over Norway and get the seeds would definately be
THE superpower to deal with, wouldn't it?

They say it won't be guarded ... except by polar bears.
hmmm ... how long until it is taken over in a serious crisis??

how would the survivors in each of
the countries get to Norway to get the seeds and distribute
them to the people of each of their countries?

This will not be the only seed bank. Norway is most likely doing this for her own people mostly and if they prompt other countries like the UK to do the same then the project is a success IMO. As I said above we need lots of these to safeguard our species. There should be hundreds of these things in Europe alone. Thousands worldwide. It may turn out to be wasted effort sure, but it will be a worthwhile wasted effort Extinction Immunity is the main goal here.

Loam-the only thing I have found out regarding this is that the Norwegian government isn't the first nor the last to do a project like this. They are only being more vocal about it.