Svalbard seed vault

One of the most important buildings in the world is located in Longyearbyen. In 2004, Norway was encouraged by several international research organizations to set up a secure storage facility for seeds in Spitsbergen. The facility on the Arctic island of Spitsbergen, which belongs to Norway, is thus a kind of biological safe deposit box for humanity. Barely more than 1000 kilometers from the North Pole, stored in the eternal ice. The opening of the global seed vault took place on February 26, 2008 and it is planned to store up to 4.5 million seed samples there.

130m deep in the mountain is where the world's seeds are stored

However, shortly after the opening ceremony, the first problems arose with the buildings due to the slow thawing of the permafrost. In 2018, Statsbygg (the client) began renovating the access tunnel to Frøkvelvet. The steel structure was replaced by a strong and watertight concrete structure. Freezing islands around and in the excavation pit form an ice wall that helps the permafrost to stop the temperature from rising. The access tunnel was completely renovated in 2019.

Frozen to stay!

Kulturaustausch, magazine for international perspectives 
on the website about the Svalbard Seed Vault.

The seed vault in Spitsbergen contributes to the preservation of seed diversity.

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