SVALBARD, NORWAY — The repository of the world’s seeds is getting an upgrade after it experienced a flooding scare in May caused by global warming.
The Global Seed Vault in Svalbard, Norway was designed to be an impregnable arctic stronghold that would safeguard plant genealogy for the future, according to the Guardian.
But rising temperatures have led to melting permafrost and heavy rain, causing flooding in the entryway. According to CNN, water gushed 15 meters into the front tunnel, where it then froze.
The ice has since been hacked out.The seeds were fortunately not affected by the meltwater and remain safely frozen in the minus 18-degree storage facility.
Precautions being taken in the facility include removing heat sources, such as a power transformer, from the tunnel. Drainage ditches will be dug around the mountainside, and the tunnel walls will be waterproofed for extra protection.
Vault managers are now monitoring the facility 24 hours a day, as they continue to minimize risks risks and take measures to ensure the seed bank will be able to operate without human help in the near future.
