ever heard of svalbard?
Natural Himalayan 'freezer' to back up Arctic seed vault - SciDev.Net
Natural Himalayan 'freezer' to back up Arctic seed vault - SciDev.Net
It is India’s doomsday vault. If the land lies cracked and barren waiting for the rain, if the sea swallows coastal paddy fields, if plagues of pests wipe crops out of existence, India has an insurance policy – a set of seeds carefully preserved in permafrost, ready to be restored, that can be cultivated and sown to feed its people.
Nestled 17,500 feet high on a cliff top in the Himalayas, Chang-La has the sub zero temperatures and low humidity necessary to suspend seed life for future generations. It is a site carefully chosen. It is far from rising seas and tectonic plate movement but around 75 km from the Leh aiport, it is close enough to human civilisation today to deposit the country’s agricultural heritage with ease.
“India is a herbal garden…. It is now getting threatened or endangered or extinct… There is a dire necessity to preserve this rich wealth of biodiversity, which exists in India to give it to the next generation,” W. Selvamurthy, distinguished scientist and Chief Controller (R&D), Ministry of Defence, told The Hindu.
They know the shot is going ot hit the fan.
Natural Himalayan 'freezer' to back up Arctic seed vault - SciDev.Net
Natural Himalayan 'freezer' to back up Arctic seed vault - SciDev.Net
It is India’s doomsday vault. If the land lies cracked and barren waiting for the rain, if the sea swallows coastal paddy fields, if plagues of pests wipe crops out of existence, India has an insurance policy – a set of seeds carefully preserved in permafrost, ready to be restored, that can be cultivated and sown to feed its people.
Nestled 17,500 feet high on a cliff top in the Himalayas, Chang-La has the sub zero temperatures and low humidity necessary to suspend seed life for future generations. It is a site carefully chosen. It is far from rising seas and tectonic plate movement but around 75 km from the Leh aiport, it is close enough to human civilisation today to deposit the country’s agricultural heritage with ease.
“India is a herbal garden…. It is now getting threatened or endangered or extinct… There is a dire necessity to preserve this rich wealth of biodiversity, which exists in India to give it to the next generation,” W. Selvamurthy, distinguished scientist and Chief Controller (R&D), Ministry of Defence, told The Hindu.
They know the shot is going ot hit the fan.