This Is A Travesty

The oldest seed bank in the world could soon be torn apart and seeds that are genetically different than 90% of the rest of the worlds supply destroyed, to build cheap housing.

Some body needs a severe beating for being so short sighted.

Pavlovsk seed bank faces destruction'

Priceless collection' in Russia was never registered so is therefore worthless and does not officially exist, say developers

Twelve Russian scientists famously chose to starve to death rather than eat the unique collection of seeds and plants they were protecting for humanity during the 900-day siege of Leningrad in the second world war. But the world's first global seed bank now faces destruction once more, to make way for a private housing estate.


The fate of the Pavlovsk agricultural station outside St Petersburg will be decided in the courts this week. If, as expected, the case goes against it then the collection of plants built up over 85 years could be destroyed within months.

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More than 90% of the plants are found in no other research collection or seed bank. Its seeds and berries are thought to possess traits that could be crucial to maintaining productive fruit harvests in many parts of the world as climate change and a rising tide of disease, pests and drought weaken the varieties farmers now grow. As it is predominantly a field collection, Pavlovsk cannot be moved. Experts estimate that even if another site were available nearby, it would take many years to relocate the plants.

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The station was established in 1926 by Nikolai Vavilov, the man credited with creating the idea of seed banks as repositories of plant diversity that could be used to breed new varieties in response to threats to food production. During the siege of Leningrad, 12 scientists chose to starve while protecting the diversity amassed by Vavilov, even though the seeds of rice, peas, corn and wheat that they were protecting could have sustained them. Vavilov died of malnutrition in prison in 1943, having criticised the anti-genetic concepts of Trofim Lysenko. But Russia has since elevated him to hero status.

More at the link.

How someone could let this happen to build cheap housing is beyond my comprehension.
Especially the oldest one on the planet that has such diversity.
Greedy fucking bastards, that's how.
Unbelievable.

Some people would dare call this progress, I would call it suicide.