Doomsday Withdrawal: Seed Vault Withdrawal Occurs For First Time Ever


The “doomsday vault” had its first ever seed withdrawal. The doomsday seed vault was created on the Norwegian island of Svalbard in 2008. The island is surrounded by constantly frozen soil and is approximately 800 miles from the North Pole.

If the power grid failed, the seeds in the Doomsday vault would be preserved for at least 200 years. The year-around temperatures on Svalbard and the seed preservation, which would occur even if the power goes out, made the location the perfect spot for the doomsday survival seed cache, USA Today reports.

According to Cary Fowler, the creator of the doomsday vault on the island, in Norway, the managers of the facility do not think that the “seed collection has been lost,” but believe the bank has definitely lost the capability of getting the seeds to farmers and scientists who need them. Fowler added that plans to re-establish the “gene bank center” in Lebanon and Morocco are currently in the words.

doomsday vault withdrawal
Doomsday vault on remote Norwegian island has its first ever withdrawal.

Additional seed gene vaults, or banks, do exist around around the globe. A similar doomsday survival seed bank is located in Aleppo, Syria — the location of the International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) headquarters. The doomsday vault was moved from Beirut to Aleppo in 2012 due to ongoing conflict in the region. Some feel the Syrian Civil War and increasing turmoil in the region prompted the decision to transfer seeds from the Middle East to the remote Norwegian island, CBS News reports.

ICARDA has reportedly been able to send samples of its seeds to 87 percent of the other banks since 2008. The seed bank is currently requesting 116,000 samples, which include wheat, barley, and grasses — all of which thrive in dry regions. A transfer of the seed samples from Aleppo will reportedly occur as soon as the necessary paperwork is completed.

The Aleppo region of Syria has reportedly been experiencing some of the most deadly and fierce fighting to date, and staff at the doomsday vault felt the center and its precious disaster survival seeds were being threatened.

“ICARDA, the International Center for Agricultural Research in The Dry Areas, had taken the precaution of duplicating their seed collection and placing a duplicate copy up in Svalbard by the North Pole, for safe keeping, just for a circumstance like this,” Fowler stated during an interview with told CBS News.

Warnings relating to blood moon doomsday prophecies and from within the pages of Jonathan Cahn’s best-seller, The Harbinger, have caused some to view the seed vault withdrawal with great apprehension.

What do you think about the doomsday vault withdrawal?

[Images via Dalishe / Shutterstock and Shutterstock]

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