The 100 year seed storage experiment in Mine 3
About the project
The Nordic Gene Bank, predecessor to today's plant section of NordGen, established the 100 year seed storage experiment in Coal mine no. 3 on Svalbard in 1986. The aim of the experiment is to monitor and study the longevity of seeds stored in permafrost and to analyze the survival of seed borne plant pathogens under such conditions.
Seed samples have regularly been withdrawn by NordGen staff for analysis according to a fixed withdrawal and analyze plan, that will continue until the last samples are analyzed in 2086.
The results of the experiment after 35 years are described in the report "Seed Longevity and Survival of Seed Borne Diseases After 35 Years Conservation in Permafrost – Report From the 100 Year Storage Experiment".
In connection with the seed analysis after 35 years, a short documentary was also made about the experiment in which the audience can follow the seed samples from Svalbard to NordGen's seed laboratory. Watch the film below: